The Cure Carrier
by Takeru 'Hope' Takaishi
Summary: Europe has fallen. America has isolated itself. It's down to one boy's blood to save the whole of humanity. A 28 Weeks Later sequel. The first of a three part series.
1. Access Denied

The Cure Carrier

Andy Harris - Mackintosh Muggleton

Tammy Harris - Imogen Poots

Flynn Stone - Harold Perrineau

Rhys Howell - Tom Price

Manda Simmonds - Samantha Womack

Chapter One

Andy and Tammy were heading to Wembley Stadium. The horrors that they had faced in the past day were finally over. Although, Tammy still had concerns about her brother. He was definitely infected, but for some reason he wasn't showing any signs of it. As they entered the building, they noticed Captain Stone's helicopter. They just kept walking, silently through the overgrown grass that had been left un-mown for the past 6 months. Andy was lost in thought, not only had his Mother died, but his Father was also dead. It was just him and his sister. All these feelings of fear and loneliness were new to him; he was a child living in hell.

Captain Stone was resting against the side of his chopper, MP5 in hand. He noticed the two figures crossing the pitch towards him. He held his machinegun steady, ready to shoot. He started to worry. Was one of them his co-soldier Doyle? It had to be, Doyle couldn't have died.

As Tammy and Andy got closer a thought suddenly struck to Tammy. What if the soldier tried to inspect them? He'd recognise Andy as infected and lord only knows what he'd do after that.

"Stop!" Captain Stone shouted. He raised the scope of his machinegun to his right eye.

Tammy slowly pushed Andy behind her.

"Where's Doyle?" Stone shouted again. Doyle wasn't there. It was just the two kids. He was getting desperate, "where's Doyle?!" He squinted as he focused his view on Tammy's eyes. They were both a pale blue colour.

She shook her head. "It's just us." She could barely get her words out. She couldn't describe what she was feeling either. All she knew was that she had to be brave and fight back the tears, for her brother's sake.

"Come on!" Stone finally responded, "get in!" Tammy and Andy stood still, frozen to the spot.

Stone was getting inpatient. "Come on!" He shouted one last time.

The kids made their way over to the helicopter, treading slowly and occupied the passenger seats. Both stared out of their respective windows as Stone fiddled around with the control. The helicopter slowly rose from the ground and stormed out of the roof of Wembley. Andy looked up at the rotors; this was the first time he'd ever been in a helicopter. It didn't seem anything like he thought it would be, back when he was younger. Never did he expect to be flying away from a scorched London as an orphan with his sister. He wondered if he was infected or not. His Dad had definitely spewed blood at him, and he remembered some getting into his mouth, but Tammy had reassured him that he wasn't one of them. He tried not to think about it and focused on the views going by.

"So what are you going to do with us?" Tammy asked, breaking the silence. Captain Stone hesitated to answer. "Well… I'm going to take you two over to a refugee camp in France, then I can head back to America," he answered, "but Doyle said something, something about you two being special. "Do you know what he was on about?"

"No, no I don't." whispered Tammy, then a little louder she asked, "But what are we going to do in France? I mean, we don't know anyone over there. Who are we going to stay with?" Tammy was brimming with questions, her seventeen year old brain found all the events quite hard to cope with. Captain Stone tried to ignore her. He didn't want the company of the two children. He didn't join the US army to be babysitting two British kids. 

"Look, just be quiet until we get across the channel please." He said irritably. In the back seat, Andy stared out the window silently as England slowly slipped away. The white cliffs of Dover slowly became less and less visible. Tammy stroked the side of his head to see if he was okay, but he didn't turn, continuing to watch his home drift into the distance.

****

PC Rhys Howell had been hiding out in Headsworth police station. Headsworth was a little village, a few miles out of Devon. He was hiding out with two other police officers, Harry and Pete. Rhys was slender in build, not too strong and had short curly golden hair. He spoke with a strong Welsh accent.

"Y'know boys, I've been listening to the radio for the past few days, they reckon that all of the Infected died out months ago." He said while sieving through some old documents, "it's disgusting, they haven't even bothered to search the little villages. We could all be dying and they wouldn't give a shit!" Harry, who was a little more bloated with scraggy brown hair stood up and placed his hand on Rhys' shoulder.

"I wouldn't worry about it mate, it's bound to be over sometime, and then we can all get back to our normal lives." He tried to be sympathetic, but it wasn't his nature. Pete was slightly younger than the others, fresh out of university at the time of infection. He sat in the corner, in silence.

"Well, the afternoon's drifting in boys, I think it's time for some lunch. Harry, go get the car ready, Pete you go and get the handguns. I'll just finish sorting out our memos." As the boys walked off, Rhys let out a sigh. He remembered back to the days before infection; back when Headsworth thrived on tourists coming to see the summer market. The sun would hang high in the sky and city folks would relax and take time out from their busy lives. He longed to go back to the days of him and his girlfriend out on patrol together, she was his life, and he was hers. He snapped out of his thoughts, he had to focus on now and not the past. The memos were quickly shuffled into order and placed in the drawer.

In the car park, the boys were loading the car with any supplies they would need: weapons, some food and contact equipment. Rhys walked through the door and took out a notebook from his pocket. Feb 18th 2007,he wrote, leaving to gather supplies. He clicked his pen, shoved him notebook into his back pocket and tugged the handle of the driving seat. Harry and Pete followed suit. At once, all the doors snapped shut and the ignition started. The police car roared into life.

"Right, are you both prepared? Weapons readied?" Rhys asked quickly. The other two nodded and they were off.

As the car sidled through the deserted streets of Headsworth, there was a foul stench of death in the air. All that was seen along the streets was death and destruction. Cars were overturned, dead bodies were strewn left, right and centre.

"Hey boss, I heard on the radio the other day that France was thinking of sending a rescue ship across." Harry piped up, trying to make some kind of conversation.

"Quiet please Harry, try to show some respect." Rhys replied simply. He didn't avert his eyes from the road, he was a man of his morals, so he felt it only right not to disturb the dead. All he wished was that Harry respected his view. At least Pete saw it from his point of view. Or at least he hoped he did, he never did quite understand why Pete didn't speak much.

As the car approached the local Tesco, Rhys ordered the other two to ready their weapons. He pulled the car up next to the main entrance and switched the engine off.

"Right," he started the brief, "you have your weapons, only use them if necessary. We don't have ammo to waste. Go in there, be careful, try not to engage the infected and get the hell out with as many supplies possible." Harry and Pete nodded and cocked their handguns. Slowly, the trio entered the shop unawares of what waited the inside.

****

The helicopter was approaching the French border. Captain Stone readied the radio to make communication.

"Have I reached the French border patrol" He inquired. There was no answer for several seconds.

"Can we have your names please?" A man asked down the radio. Captain Stone looked back at the kids. It took a while until Tammy realised what he was waiting for.

"Oh, I'm Tammy Harris, and my brother's called Andrew Harris." She stated morosely. Stone tried to let out a faint smile and turned back to the radio.

"I am Captain Flynn Stone of the US Marines, my two passengers are UK citizens, Tammy and Andrew Harris. Could we possibly be granted access?" There was more silence for a few minutes.

Finally, the man radioed back. "No, sorry we cannot grant access." Tammy and Andy's heads shot up. Flynn looked at the fuel gage. It was nearing empty.

"Come on man, we ain't got anywhere else to go." He tried to reason.

"Sorry, we're not accepting any British citizens until Britain has been properly sterilised." The man showed no sympathy in his voice.

Flynn couldn't believe what he was hearing. He felt like it was the kid's faults, but deep down he knew he had to do as Doyle had asked and take them to safety. "You've got to be fucking kidding me! You have to let us in!" Tammy reached over to Andy and pulled him in for a tight hug. He buried his head into her shoulder.

"Please leave, or we will have to take drastic action." The voice stated down the radio. Flynn took another moment to think. He threw the radio down.

"Fuck you! Fuck you!" He shouted. "Right kids, hold on, we're gonna try it make it back." He jerked the control stick to the right and the copter swivelled violently clockwise. Andy and Tammy grabbed hold of their respective sides of the passenger area. They weren't feeling that great back on land, let alone being thrown about inside a helicopter. The copter flew forwards heading back to Britain. Flynn knew he had to make it, he had to make it back to land. Tammy looked out of the window and marvelled at the speed of the water whooshing past. Neither she nor Andy had been told of the fuel problems they were experiencing. Flynn kept his lips sealed, the last thing he needed was two panicking children on his back.

As they approached shore, Flynn took another look at the fuel. It was finally as good as empty.

"Alright, kids, buckle up, this isn't going to be easy!" He yelled. Tammy quickly grabbed the seatbelt and pulled it across her. She then turned to Andy and gave him a hand. Flynn did the same, slowly tilted the control stick forwards and pressed a few buttons.

"What are you doing?! Are we safe?! What's wrong?!" Tammy shouted towards the cockpit. "Answer me for god's sa-" She was cut off by a large bang and her body jilted against the seat belt. Andy's head was thrown forwards, as it did, he fell unconscious and slumped back into his seat. Tammy looked on at him horrified and scared. The helicopter buried itself in the dirt as it ploughed into the fields outside Dover.

Flynn unbuckled his belt unharmed and kicked the door open. There was no one around, all was silent. Except for the worried voice of the seventeen year old girl in the back seat.

"Andy, Andy wake up. Please don't do this to me now, not after everything that's happened!" She cried into her brother's shoulder. Flynn took a step towards them.

"Come on, come on. He's still breathing so he can't be dead." He reached out for her hand and pressed it under Andy's chin. "Y'see? He's still got a pulse." He gave her a faint smile. Tammy sighed in relief and unbuckled her seat belt. Then she heard something, but it wasn't only her, Flynn heard it as well. Their heads snapped towards the top of the green grassy hill and noticed something they thought impossible.

It was the infected. Somehow the infected hadn't all died out like the American soldiers claimed. The pair was horrified.

"Quick, get Andy!" Tammy screamed whilst not taking her eyes of the crowd running down the hill. Flynn unbuckled Andy's seatbelt and lifted him into a fireman's lift. He noticed a small collection of buildings at the bottom of the hill.

"Keep going down there and run to the nearest building- wait, no, go to the nearest supermarket." He started off down the hill. But then he remembered, in the cockpit above the seat was a photo, a photo which meant the world to him.

"Wait!" He called. "We have to go back!" He turned to run back, but noticed that the infected had clustered round the copter. His heart sank. He needed that photo, it was the last thing he had to remind him of his family. However, this was not the situation to be thinking about this in. "Keep going, keep going come on!" Tammy and Flynn headed towards the town, Andy still unconscious on Flynn's shoulder.

****

Flynn slowly pushed the main doors of Tesco open. It was in total darkness, besides the light flooding in from the windows. There hadn't been live electricity The silence was eerie, there didn't seem to be any infected around at the present. There were definitely traces of the infected, dead bodies and pools of blood, but there were no actual infected people around. Tammy sniffed the air and the smell of rotting flesh penetrated her nostrils. She gagged in disgust. The shelves around them were dripping with decaying food and congealing blood. Flynn spotted a counter at the back of the building.

"Tammy, go clear that counter." He ordered her. Tammy nodded, ran to the counter and swiped her arms across it, knocking all the products off. Flynn followed and laid the boy down on the counter. "I don't think any CPR is necessary; we'll just have to wait until he comes to."

Just as Flynn uttered the words, Andy's eyes slowly opened. The surroundings were different to him. He wasn't in the helicopter any longer. Just as he went to sit up, his sister ran up and grasped him in a tight hug.

"Oh Andy! Thank god!" Andy wrapped his arms around Tammy and embraced her. The one person not taking part in the happiness was Flynn. He was bent down, kneeling over a dead police officer. He picked up the blood cover name badge. He wiped the blood off with the body's shirt. It read _Harry Smith_. Suddenly, a man dashed out of a staff door to the left.

"Leave him alone!" He shouted. His face was dirty with dust and his blonde curly hair was strewn all over the place. "PC Rhys Howell. Please don't touch the body." He snatched the name tag off of Flynn and pocketed it.

Flynn was lost for words. "Sorry, who the hell are you and what are you doing here?"

Rhys led the trio into the staff office. He sat on the office desk. Flynn, Tammy and Andy pulled up a few chairs.

"It started six months ago during the original outbreak. I stayed in the police station, there was about ten of us. We went out for collection weekly and raided people's homes and supermarkets. I don't know why we bothered trying Tesco again to be honest. Then this afternoon, the two surviving lads and I came here looking for any leftover food. We didn't think we'd see any of them, any of the infected. But we were ambushed, Harry and Pete didn't get away, but I managed to slip into here unnoticed." He closed his eyes in defeat. He tried to change the subject. "But listen to this, it's a broadcast one of the boys hacked into on their laptop." He gave Flynn a Dictaphone.

The group crowded round Flynn, and he pressed the play button. "I, President George Bush, we have had many reports from the US representatives in the UK that they have lost control. This will no doubt lead to the fall of Europe. Hereby I, as President, declare that we quarantine, not only Britain, but the whole of Europe. America is isolating itself, we are becoming independent. That is all." Tammy looked at Flynn horrified. The group was speechless.


	2. 28 Days Later

Chapter 2

1 day later. Flynn, Tammy, Andy and Rhys set off to head north.

5 days later. The group exit Kent and find transport.

10 days later. The group are forced to abandon their transport and continue on foot.

20 days later. Australia announces its isolation.

28 days later. Infection reaches the rest of Europe and Flynn, Tammy, Andy and Rhys arrive in the small market town of Stamford.

The twigs in Burghley park snapped underneath the footsteps of the survivors. It had been a long 28 days, not to mention most of it was done on foot. Most of the journey was spent dodging any signs of the infected and keeping to the countryside; it was much too dangerous to travel on the main roads. Andy's infection was getting increasingly worse, he was starting to regularly vomit blood and he'd occasionally black out. The group reached the end of the gardens and made their first steps in the small market town they had been heading to for the last few hours.

"So what's this town called again?" Asked Flynn as he led the group, MP5 up high. Rhys fiddled with his fingers and stared back at the gardens they just exited.

"I think, say that that is Burghley house, we should be in Stamford. It's a little town on the edge of Lincolnshire." He replied. He reached down to his holster and whipped out his own weapon. He held it shoulder height and snapped his arms into place. There was no more talking as they reached the bottom of the road, nearing a little river. Dusk was falling and Rhys knew that they'd have to find somewhere to stay soon.

Andy stepped forwards and peered into the murky water; nothing could be seen except for a few discarded branches. He bent down and dipped his hand into the water, he scratched the dry blood off. In the entire 28 days, not one of the group had been able to wash or change their clothes; therefore they were all gritty and not particularly smelling too great. After a couple of minutes scratching at the blood, Tammy came up behind him and pulled him up.

"Come one, we've got to go. We'll find a house and then you can get washed properly, yeah?" She reassured him. Andy gave a faint smile and nodded. She put her arm around him and guided him back to Flynn and Rhys.

A white iron bridge was sprawled across the river, the perfect access to the town centre for the group. The river flowed gently underneath it as each of them took slow and steady steps across. Tammy and Andy leaned over the railing to get a last look, all was still within the depths, no fish, nothing.

Flynn spoke up. "Seems like this town was badly hit." He looked at the buildings that were across the bridge; they were damaged with broken windows and doors that had been knocked down. Cars were overturned in the adjacent car park and others smashed up. It was a ghostly sight. Tammy's eyes scanned their surrounding areas, it was getting dark but so far there hadn't been any signs of the Infected. She hoped that it would stay that way. She diverted her eyes up into the sky, the sun was barely visible anymore, they would have to get a move on and find shelter before dark.

Flynn led the others further in towards Broad Street. They turned the corner to find themselves between a Lloyds TSB and the local Catholic Church.

"Right, go open the church doors, I'll cover you." Flynn ordered Rhys. "Kids, stay behind me." Tammy pulled Andy over and behind the American soldier. Rhys closed in on the main entrance of the church, avoiding stepping on the graves, remembering his vows to have respect for the dead. He reached for the metal handle and pushed down on it, slowly he pulled the door open. The door released with an almighty squeak. He readied his gun by his side and trusted the door the remainder of the way open. He took a step into the church and disappeared into the darkness. All the time, Flynn's MP5 remained aimed at the door.

A few minutes had passed and Flynn was starting to worry. There had been no sign of Rhys, alive or dead. He had to do something.

"Okay, kids, stay close to me. Don't wait here, don't stray, just stay right next to me at all times. You got me?" Tammy and Andy nodded; Tammy grabbed Andy's hand and led him along with Flynn. The three of them crept through the graveyard and were just about to get to the church as Rhys flew out of the doors backwards. His body slammed against the ground, causing the other three to jump back in horror. Rhys rose from the ground and composed himself; he shook his head then stared back into the church. His fears were true.

"Quick, go! Get some ground, they're coming!" He shouted as he advanced out of the graveyard. Flynn and the children followed suit and backed out. To their horror, five infected people ran out of the church doors, blood dripping from their mouths, snarling like animals.

Rhys leaped forwards onto the steps of the Stamford library and Flynn mounted a nearby bench. Both aimed their guns towards the infected.

"Aim for the heads!" Rhys shouted towards Flynn. Flynn rolled his eyes and took a shot. With an agonisingly loud bang, the infected's head exploded.

"Oh I know what I'm doing." He laughed back. His joy was cut short as more infected poured out of the church. Flynn's face fell as he turned back and signalled to Tammy and Andy to retreat. Rhys noted the sign and followed. Their feet hit the floor hard as they strained with the last of their energy to get away from the oncoming infected. Andy was starting to lag a bit; Tammy looked behind her and grabbed his hand. The Infected were catching up, blood pouring from their mouths as they vomited, somehow they managed to run and run and run without needing a break. It was almost as if they could run forever. The prospect terrified Tammy who picked up the pace and kept hold of her brother to ensure his safety.

****

The local Tescos stood morose in the high street. The shutters were down and there had not been any sign of life for a long time. Inside, the shelves were littered with food and candles were lit in every aisle. The dusty air glistened in the candlelight and in the darkness sat a woman. She was blonde, although the lack of sunlight had darkened it into a tawny hue. She was about thirty years old and was sat upon the floor in her black business suit and black tee with her eyes closed. She knew her days were numbered; she just wanted to see and talk to somebody.

Manda Simmonds hadn't had much luck since infection broke. She had been happily married to a journalist called Ethan and living in Stamford. She worked as a lecturer at Cambridge University, she'd take the train there and back every week day. A few days before the initial outbreak her husband had left on an assignment but he never returned; that was the last she had seen of him since. Since then, she banded together with a small group of survivors and kept on the move. Recently, they broke into a house and retrieved a laptop. Not long after, they were ambushed and only she escaped, retreating to the high street. After the ambush, she had been alone, all alone.

Her eyes snapped open and she took a deep breath. She pushed herself up from the ground and lumbered towards the laptop case. After the laptop was prized open and booted up, Manda opened up the downloads folder. Inside the folder was an audio clip, she clicked on it and listened.

"Can somebody help? They have reached France!" A French voice blared out the speakers. "We opened the tunnel, they overran us. Please help!" A tear rolled down Manda's cheek. The entire continent of Europe was doomed; first France fell, what next? Germany? Spain? "If anybody hears this, Europe is not safe, the infection has spread! Just please hel-" The recording cut off. It was the beginning of the end for Europe, rage had won.

She wiped the tear from her eye and stood up. She steadily made her way to a tape recorder radio and pressed the play button. Her message was broadcast down the radio on every wavelength.

"If there is anyone out there. Anyone uninfected, please make your way to Broad Street, Stamford. I will be waiting there, Manda Simmonds, blonde, about 5'7". That is all." All she could do was wait and hope that someone gets the message. Putting the tape on a loop for one hour, she sat back down at the laptop. She was just about to shut it down when she heard shouts from outside the shop. She crept towards the shutters and peered through the holes; outside she noticed a black soldier, a white police officer, a young girl and even younger boy running down the street. Gasping, she pulled the shutters up and grabbed a torch off the till.

She ran outside and waved the torch in the air. This was her chance, he chance to have company again.

"Over here!" She shouted. She knew the infected would follow, but the shutters should be able to keep them out for a while. The soldier spotted her, he pointed in her direction and the group made their way to the shop. She moved out the way to let them in and then reached for the shutters. The police officer helped her, whilst the soldier shot and killed the oncoming infected. One by one, they slumped to the ground in a pool of blood.

"They're gonna know we're here now." Manda announced. "Grab whatever you can and go through the door at the back, it leads to the apartments above, okay?" She handed the girl her torch and beckoned them through the shop. The soldier strode up to Manda.

"Hey, the name's Flynn, Flynn, Stone." He grabbed her hand and shook it. "These are my, um, compatriots: Rhys Howell, Tammy and Andy Harris. We have a lot to be grateful to you for. If it weren't for you, I don't think we would have made it away from those monsters."

Manda smiled and shook her head. "Look don't worry about it, I'm just glad to have the company again. The name's Manda Simmonds." She felt warm inside, a feeling she hadn't felt since her husband left. The group gathered as much as they could and continued to the door.

The door flung open and Manda led the group into the main sitting room. She laid the laptop down onto the coffee table and slumped onto the sofa. The room was a mess. The windows had been boarded with planks of wood and the strong stench of rotten food hung in the air. Everything was dyed a musty brown colour and rubbish was strewn in every inch of the room.

"Ugh, what's that smell?" Andy grimaced as he entered the room behind his sister.

"I don't know, but try not to breathe to hard." Tammy replied. She motioned that he pull his shirt over his nose and he did so. They climbed over the discarded boxes and sat gently on the other sofa. Rhys and Flynn made their way into the kitchen to check out the smell.

"You two are looking pretty messy, don't you?" Manda deduced. "I have a boiler of water that I refill from the river Welland every week. You can use it to have a wash if you want."

"That's really kind of you, thank you." Tammy and Andy got up from the sofa and clambered their way to the bathroom.

"Oh but remember, there isn't any electricity. So the water is going to be cold." Manda called to them as they walked out. She had always wanted children, but her husband didn't want the commitment yet.

Flynn picked up a frying pan; in it was a 32 week old pizza. Fungi thrived on the soggy, cold toppings. He brought it up to his nose and gave it a sniff. In reaction, his face screwed up like he was sucking on a sour lemon; the smell was excruciatingly bad. He threw the pan to the floor and looked over to Rhys, who looked back and sniggered.

"What you laughing at you bag of bones?" He laughed back, he threw a bit of the pizza at Rhys, who dodged and laughed it off. The two had formed a good friendship over the 28 days they had spent together. Rhys reminded Flynn slightly of Doyle which made him feel better and get over his death easier.

"What a state she's living in." Rhys started quietly. "And how does she live with the smell?" He scrunched his face up.

"I don't know, but I think we should keep an eye on her. We don't know what she's like yet." Flynn, once again scanned the old bits of food.

Manda burst into the kitchen, making the two men jump with surprise.

"Can I get you guys anything? The kids are getting washed, so-" She noticed their reaction. "Oh sorry, are you two a- Are you two going- What I'm trying say is, are you two a couple?" While Rhys sniggered and shook his head, Flynn stood in silence.

"No, we're not." He said sternly. Manda raised her eyebrows and sighed.

"Well, I'm sorry to have offended you." She rolled her eyes as she exited.

"Well done Romeo." said Rhys. "You really know how to flatter a girl don't you?"

"I'm stuck on this stupid island with a Welsh cop, two English kids and a woman who thinks I'm gay. I could be at home with my beautiful wife and my beautiful children. But no, I'm stuck here, looking after your asses!" He pushed past Rhys and leant on one of the counters to cool off. There was an awkward silence as Rhys didn't really know what to say.

"Look I'm sorry okay?" Flynn took another deep breath. "It's just these circumstances make you look at life differently." He offered his hand.

The other man took it and they shook. "Don't worry about it, I completely understand, I lost my girlfriend to the infected."

"I'm sorry." Flynn replied in a morose manner. "Come on; let's not dwell on these kind of thoughts. Let's focus on here and now." He mopped some sweat from his forehead and left for the living room.

"Manda." Flynn approached the woman. She was sitting on the sofa again with a mucky glass filled with wine. "I didn't mean to react badly, it's just- Do you know what it's like to lose your family?" There was no response. "Manda?" Still no response. "Please, I'm trying to apologise." She put the glass down and looked up to him.

"Please, I don't want to talk about it. Things happened and then I ended up alone. That's as deep as well as I want to go." Flynn nodded in agreement and sat down next to her. He picked up one of the glasses and poured himself a drink. He took a breath and thought about what to say.

"To survival?" He raised his glass slightly.

"To survival." Manda repeated. They touched their glasses together and drank.

****

Andy placed the water bucket down and stepped out from the shower. As soon as he did so, he noticed the dust in the air sticking to the skin on his hands. He grabbed a towel and dried himself down before getting dressed back into his clothes, his red hoody was dyed a musky brownish colour. As he stared at his hands, they looked clean for the first time in four weeks. It felt refreshing, although his headache was still growing worse. He hadn't been sick for a while, which was a good sign, but he had a feeling that it wouldn't last.

"Are you all done?" Tammy opened the bathroom door. In her hands were a pair of black converse all stars. "I found these; they're size 5, so they should fit you." She handed them to him and he slipped his raggedy old trainers off.

"Thanks Tam, they're brilliant!" He smiled and wrapped his arms round her for a hug. Even though bad things were happening worldwide, they still had each other. She let go and Andy bent down to put the shoes on. Tammy picked up his old shoes and walked out the door.

Looking down at his new shoes, Andy remembered the days before infection. The days when he would go for trips out to the city centre with his Dad, Mum and Tammy. He distinctly remembered having the same kind of converse back in 2004 when they went camping in the Peak District; they weren't a particularly rich family so it was all they could afford. It was all country walks and campfire cooking. Not exactly the dream holiday, but for the Harris family is was a good chance for them to spend time together.

He joined his Sister in the bedroom and sat on the bed. Tammy sat down next to him and put her arm round him.

"How are you feeling now then?" She asked him mid hug.

"Not too bad. My head still hurts though." He replied whilst clutching his head.

"Tam, do you know what's wrong with me?" Tammy still hadn't told him about his infection. She didn't know how to, he was only young and she didn't want to upset him.

"I haven't got a clue. It's probably the stress of the situation. Don't worry about it." She smiled at him and brushed his hair out his eyes. "It'll go soon, I promise."

After a few minutes of sitting, Tammy got up and wandered towards the boarded up window. Without thinking, she tugged at the boards, they were too stiff. Andy gave her a bewildered look.

"You could always help?" She said in a sarcastic manner. With a huff, Andy got up and helped with the windows. The plank of wood broke off in a cloud of dust and Tammy peered out of the greasy, smudged window. Silence filled the streets and the moon hung in the clear, cloudless sky. The streetlights had no power flowing to them, so the moon was the only source of light outside the building.

"Do you think it will ever be back to normal again?" Andy inquired whilst looking onto the bare streets.

"Yeah, yeah it will do." Tammy answered simply.

There was a knock on the bedroom door and Rhys entered the room. He noticed the kids looking out the window; shocked, he ran and moved them out the way. He put the plank of wood back up and addressed Tammy and Andy.

"What do you think you were doing eh?" He rolled the sleeves of his shirt up and sighed. "You don't do anything stupid like that, you hear me? You don't want _them _knowing that we're here do we?" The two of them shook their heads understandably. "Good, now come on, it's lights out and we're all staying in the same room. It's safer." Just as Rhys stopped talking, Andy lurched forwards in pain, he opened his mouth and blood shot out, almost as powerfully as an industrial fire brigade's hose. He fell to the ground clutching his head.

"Tam, what's wrong with me?! What is wrong with me?!" He writhed in pain. Rhys, under shock, had no idea what to do. By the time he figured to go get something to mop the blood up with, Tammy was already helping Andy up to sit on the bed.

"It's not normal to sick up blood." Rhys started as he returned with a few towels. "So why did he do it?" He threw a towel to Tammy, who gave him a hand with cleaning it.

"I don't know." She lied. "None of us know, we're just putting up with it, the best that we can." They mopped the blood up and Tammy took the towels and put them in the wardrobe.

"Come on, time we all got some shut eye." Rhys suggested as he went back to the living room. Tammy closed the wardrobe door gently and lifted Andy's arm around her shoulders. Slowly, she helped him into the living room.

They laid down together and pulled a dusty sheet over them.

"One more day done with." Tammy whispered to herself.


	3. Truths and Trials

Chapter Three

The next morning, Manda woke up to what little light shone through the cracks in the window boards. She brushed her hand through her hair and lifted up her yellow tinted pillow. Under the pillow was a calendar, she read the date _19th__ April 2007_. She was the last to wake, Flynn and Rhys were getting washed, Andy was exploring more of the house and Tammy was sat in the corner of the living room. Manda rubbed her face to wake herself up and shuffled towards Tammy. She gave her a gentle nudge on the shoulder.

"What's up?" She said simply. She and Tammy hadn't had much time to introduce themselves. Tammy's face was blank and Manda didn't really know what else to say. "Tammy?"

"Today is the nineteenth of April, isn't it?" She responded under her breath, Manda nodded. "Well, today is my eighteenth birthday."

"Well that's something to be celebrated." Manda chuckled, trying to be positive.

"Not in this kind of world. How am I meant to celebrate, when only 29 days ago I lost my Mum and my Dad? Andy feels the same, but being his age, he's much better at masking it."

"You're an orphan?" Manda asked in embarrassment. "I'm really sorry… I… I didn't know."

"Yeah." This one word spoke volumes, Tammy was broken, she wasn't who she used to be. She was like ice. Manda decided to let her have some space and went to freshen up, she intended to venture out from the safety of the apartment and return to her old home, for the first time since the outbreak.

Andy was exploring the bedroom, candle held in hand. Even during the day time, the boards covering the windows would keep any sunlight from entering the rooms. It was a boy's bedroom, possibly a boy around the same age as him. The walls were plastered with posters of Doctor Who and Harry Potter, although the dust caused them to become almost unrecognisable. On the bedside cabinet was a picture of the boy and his family, they looked happy altogether; one big happy family. Something which Andy had missed having for the past 7 months. He placed the picture back where he found it and moved on to look at a mini glass Snowglobe, just seeing the snow swirl around inside it was calming, mood lifting. The room reminded him of his own, back in London.

"Come on Andy, we're leaving!" Manda called from the other room. Instead of putting the Snowglobe down, Andy stuck it in his pocket and joined the others in the main room.

As Andy walked in, Rhys cocked and prepared his Handgun; Flynn did the same with his MP5.

"So, we're going for supplies?" Flynn asked Manda with a hint of suspicion.

Manda fiddled with her suit buttons for a few seconds then replied. "Yeah, I have a list of different residences and every Thursday I go and gather supplies from them. It's not too hard because the Infected are easier to spot and the light makes navigating the streets safer." It took a few minutes, but Flynn nodded in what Manda interpreted to be acceptance. She took the first step and opened the door leading to the stairwell.

"Women and children first." Rhys smiled. Flynn gave him a smack on the shoulder and took place at the front. The others copied and formed a line at the door. First Flynn, then Manda, Tammy and Andy, then Rhys covering them from the back.

"Is everyone ready?" Flynn asked. Everyone nodded, except Tammy, who stood still with a blank expression. "Right, and Manda, you sure this is the right address?"

"I think I know the address to m- the addresses of houses in the town that I live in thank you." She stuttered back. Flynn was still untrusting, but gave her the benefit of the doubt.

"Alright, let's move." He raised his gun and started the walk downstairs. Manda, laptop on hand, followed taking a sigh of relief. She didn't want them to know this was a personal trip for her benefit.

"If we're living in a supermarket, why do we need to go for supplies?" Andy asked inquisitively to Tammy. Despite her feelings, Tammy felt it her duty to keep strong for her brother.

"Because the supplies here aren't very good anymore." She replied forcing a smile out. Of course she didn't know, she hadn't spoken to anyone besides him that morning. But as long as it made him feel better about it, she felt it was the right thing to tell him. The group reached the shutters at the front of Tesco, Manda and Rhys pulled them open and the blinding sunlight shot into the room. Everyone squinted in reaction. Flynn and Rhys adjusted quickly and poked their heads out the doors. There was no sign of any infected within the vicinity, so it was safe to make a move. As they walked out, Andy felt the sun hit his face, the heat intensified on his head, as did his headache.

"Tammy, have you got the pills?" He asked his sister. Tammy rummaged through her jean pockets and presented a packet of paracetamol. She popped two out of the packet and gave them to him. He put them into his mouth and swallowed. "Thanks. Will the headache go soon?"

"Yeah it will. Just keep taking these pills and it will." Tammy tried to keep his spirits up and they continued to walk down the high street.

The metal benches which sat near to the edge of the town were stained with dirty red blood and the metallic surface burned Andy's hand at the touch.

"Ow!" He exclaimed as he blew furiously at his scolded digits. He rolled his hand up into his shirt and squeezed it tightly, not that it would heal it, but it definitely helped ease the pain a little. The light made Andy's infected, bloodshot eye very noticeable. To counter this, Tammy had told Flynn and Rhys that he was born like that and they thought nothing of it. As they exited the town centre and started down the nearby road, the group had to keep a sharper eye put for any infected. They could come running down out of an alleyway at any time.

"So, how far is this house then?" Flynn asked, still quite suspicious. He knew something wasn't quite right, but just not what it was.

"It's down a few roads, should only take us about ten or twenty minutes." Manda assured him. The deserted town was creepy, Stamford was usually a busy market town with people coming to visit the old Victorian structures, but now there was no one, just the wind. Pools of thick, congealed blood lay where people had been beaten unmercifully by the infected hordes. Step after step, Flynn gripped his gun tighter. Surely the peace they were currently having couldn't last?

"This truly is a beautiful town." Rhys chimed, trying to lighten the situation. "I wish I'd have come here a few months sooner." Neither of the other adults responded, so he directed his attention towards Andy and Tammy. "Eh kids? You ever been to a small town like this, or have you spent your entire lives in London?" There was no response from Tammy, but Andy answered.

"Well, other than a few holidays at the Peak District and the one to Spain, I've never been outside of London before." He still clutched his hand in his shirt.

"Never? Not once? Blimey, not a very rich family then?" Rhys tried not to sound rude.

"We never had much money. Mum and Dad barely had enough to pay for the trip to Spain." Andy went back to concentrate on walking. Rhys realised it might be a sensitive subject, knowing the boy had lost most of his family over the last month, so he also changed the subject.

"So, how many clips do you have for that thing?" He addressed Flynn. Flynn checked his ammo pockets and counted two magazines.

"I have three, included the loaded one." He replied. "What about you?"

"I have about four." Rhys announced.

The group arrived a fork road. The sign above the road indicated that the right road led to Morrisons and the left road led to Sheepmarket Surgery.

"It's left." Manda informed Flynn. He nodded in response and continued left, gun held high. Approaching the corner of another road, Flynn heard a sharp screaming noise. Shock hit him and he shot off in the direction of the scream, Manda, Rhys and the kids tried to keep up. As they turned the corner they saw a ginger woman on the floor wrestling with an infected. The woman noticed Flynn standing there.

"Help me, help me please!" She screamed in severe pain. Flynn and Rhys ran up to her and pulled the infected off her.

"Rhys!" Flynn shouted and pointed at the infected flailing on the ground. Rhys pulled the trigger on his handgun and the bullet shattered its skull, blood exploded into the air and the two men covered their faces. The woman however, wasn't so lucky. Before she had a chance to try and shield herself, a drop of blood had flew into her mouth.

"Are you ok?" Flynn checked. "Hey, excuse me, are you alright?" She fell to the ground and started to spasm, her arms flailed around and her body contracted as though she was under extreme electrocution. The spasms stopped and she sat up right, she looked normal, but her eyes slowly became bloodshot and blood tricked through the cracks in her lips. All of a sudden, she sprang up and ran towards Rhys, who was naively turned away facing Manda. She was just about to jump up onto him, when Rhys fired at her. Her body slumped lifeless.

"You'd better watch your back next time!" He shouted in Rhys' direction.

********

Manda approached the house she had been thinking about. In the driveway was a flashy Ford Mondeo.

"Here it is." She said and led the group up the driveway. "28 Masterton Road." She took a deep breath and pulled out a hairpin from her suit pocket. She poked and twisted the door lock with the pin until there was a click and then pulled the gold painted handle down. The house wasn't anything special; it was a terraced council house and was relatively small. The walls were covered in moss which had infested over the past seven months

"Home sweet home." she muttered under her breath.

The door pushed open and Manda cautiously stepped into through it. The house smelled musty, but oddly fresh compared to the apartment she had been staying in. Flynn and the others bustled in after her.

"Right, so we get the supplies and then we leave right?" He asked.

"Yeah." She lied. She was too sidetracked by the marvel of being back in her home after so long. It looked the same as it always did, although she noticed the back door was open, and she definitely remembered locking it. "Be careful when looking around. You never know what could lay round the corner." Flynn and Rhys moved on into the kitchen to raid the cupboards; Tammy and Andy climbed the stairs to explore and Manda walked into the living room.

The fridge door swung open and Flynn peered inside; the lack of electricity made it hard to see to the back of it. He placed his gun onto the side and picked up a carton of milk. Screwing the lid off, he took a whiff and grimaced, it was off. He shoved it back in the fridge with disgust and moved onto the drawers.

"What on earth does she think we're gonna find here, that we didn't already have in Tesco?" He moaned. "We should never have agreed to this."

"Stop whining and search will you?" Rhys Opened a top cupboard, everything he picked up was stale or out of date. "We're here now, so we might as well get on with it." His face dropped as he picked out a photo and showed Flynn.

Manda bent down and wiped the dust off of her leather sofa. She missed being here, everyday that had gone by, not once did she forget about her home. The familiar surroundings were comforting to be around, however how she was going to explain to Flynn that she had brought them here for such a personal reason, she didn't know. She had said they would only spend about an hour gathering supplies, but she wanted to stay here for good. When you lose something, you start to appreciate it a lot more; this is what Manda learned after Eric had left. She took the laptop bag off her shoulder and laid it down on the sofa next to her. Being back in her home made her dumbstruck; she didn't know what to do. The decision was made for her as Flynn burst through the door.

"Going for supplies are we? Just a random house eh?" He fired questions at her. She stood up immediately.

"Yeah, that's what I said and that's what we're doing." She defended. Flynn grabbed her arm and thrust the photo into her hand.

"Then explain that!"

She looked at the photo, it was of her and Eric. She gulped in stunned silence; her eyes fell to the ground in shame.

"Is it so wrong to want a bit of happiness?" She muttered.

"At our expense? Yes!" Flynn was completely unemotional. "It isn't safe out there, infected everywhere. And you led us on an expedition just to see your home? When we had a perfectly good set up down town?"

"Oh, cause you're so perfect aren't you?" She fought back. "The way you-"

"Don't try and spin this back on me!"

"Oh and why not?" Because you're all perfect? Because you're the authority figure? Because you miss your family _so_ much, that you're trying your best to get back to them?" She grabbed the laptop and barged Flynn out the way. Flynn and Rhys stood in shock

****

Once again, Andy and Tammy went to explore the bedrooms. There was only one, and it was an adult's room. It was much cleaner than the one they had seen in the apartment, as light shone through the window and colours were visible rather than everything being a musty grey/brown tint. One similarity however, was the dust in the air; it was intoxicating and Tammy had to try not to breath to deep as to suck it in. The main hallway had no windows, so it was only visible by the sunlight that shone in through other rooms.

Tammy heard a shuffling noise from the master bedroom.

"Stay here." She informed Andy. He did so and stayed put next to the stairs. She made her way slowly to the door and pulled the handle down. Trying to be as quiet as possible, she pushed the door gently, trying not to let it squeak. The metal of the handle got sticky as her hands sweated more and more.

****

"Don't you dare speak to me like that!" Flynn's voice bellowed. He strode into the dining room after Manda and slammed the door after him. "At least I didn't trick four strangers into risking their lives just for my own personal gain!"

"No, you didn't know. But you don't know how I feel; nobody knows how I feel inside." She tried to defend herself.

"That's because you won't speak about it. And no wonder, do you really think we would have come if we knew the truth?"

"Exactly! So how was I supposed to say anything?"

"It's better than lying to us."

"Oh, I get it now. It's to do with your pride; you don't want to be outwitted, you don't want to be seen as weaker than someone."

****

As Tammy peered round the now open door, she saw someone slouched over a blood-stained carpet. No, there were two people, or at least she thought there were two, she saw a leg sticking round the side of the bed so there must have been. The first person was viciously taking chunks out of the other person and eating them. Surely he wasn't infected, the infected didn't eat, they only slaughtered. She took her first steps into the room, cautious of any loose floor boards.

A speck of dust landed right on the end of her nose and was sucked up like a vacuum. Her nose started to tingle and she felt a sneeze coming on; she had to hold it, there was no other option. She tried and tried, but it was not to be. She could hold the sneeze in no longer and it came out like an almighty foghorn.

****

"Stop trying to act all high and mighty lady, because it ain't working!" Flynn bellowed in rage. Manda was almost in tears.

"High and mighty? What's wrong with you? It's not like any of us are dead. We made it here safe and there's plenty of room for us to stay." Rhys came running into the room.

"Please can we just stop the fighting?" He tried to make peace, but the angry Flynn didn't oblige.

"No, no let's settle this right here, right now." He demanded. Rhys ran round and comforted Manda.

"No really Flynn, let's stop this now. We need to stick together and stop fighting. All we have is each other; we cannot afford to lose that, especially with the state that that poor boy upstairs is in. Eh? You get me now? Imagine how it must feel for them to have to put up with you two arguing all the time. Now can we all stop this animosity and start coming up with a decent plan to get us out of the country?" Ashamed, Flynn nodded silently, as did Manda.

****

The figure turned around and noticed Tammy. For a moment she was frozen to the spot, unable to move, but as soon as it got up she turned and leaped out of the bedroom. The man jumped across the bed and gained on her just as she was reaching the staircase. Andy, who was waiting at the end of the hallway, was alerted as the infected man leaped and knocked Tammy to the ground. Instead of instantly killing her, the infected man went in to bite her throat; Tammy had just enough strength to hold his head back. Andy reached into his pocket and pulled out the Snowglobe he had taken from the apartment, ran up to where the infected and his sister were on the floor and, with all his strength, plunged it onto the back of the man's head. Over and over again, until Tammy felt no more pressure on her. A little spit of blood landed in Andy's left eye and he winced slightly in reaction, dropping the globe by the stairs.

"Thanks… Andy." She struggled the words out, it was such a terrifying experience and the wrestle by the stairs had exhausted her. Andy didn't respond as he fiddled with his eye to get the blood out; his headache started to return, but worse than before, much worse. It felt more like a migraine and his legs felt weak. He knew what happened if blood entered your body, you would become one of them. Is this what it felt like to be infected?

Tammy noticed her brother's strange behaviour.

"Andy, what's up? What happened?" She asked as she rose to her feet. Still in pain, Andy tried to step closer to his sister.

"It hurts! Make it stop!" He shouted as his legs carried him across the hallway. But he didn't notice it, right in front of the stairs, where he dropped it was the Snowglobe. His feet were flung in its direction as his migraine worsened and with one bad step, everything went wrong. His foot bent inwards as it slipped off the Snowglobe and his whole body lurched over and he lost consciousness. He rolled down the stairs in the same fashion that a boulder would roll down a mountain and at the bottom, his head collided with the wall.


	4. The Hospital

**Author's note: The astericks don't seem to be working, which is odd, but the only scene cuts are between the normal and italics, so it's easily distinguishable. Thanks for reading, enjoy chapter four.**

Chapter Four

THUD! That was the sound which echoed through the house. Manda, still clutching her laptop bag, Flynn and Rhys were alerted and ran out to the hallway and noticed Andy laying at the bottom of the stairs, blood seeping from the side of his head. The sight shook the three out of their sorry mood.

"Tammy?" Manda shouted up the stairs. A sudden shot of adrenaline shot through Tammy, who was still slightly out of breath.

"Yeah?" She shouted back. She looked downstairs and saw Andy's body, sprawled across the floor.

"Cupboard at the end of the hall, get a towel out and bring it down. Now!" Manda scooped Andy up and kept his head aloft. "He's out cold and that's a nasty gash in his head." She poked her finger under his chin. "Pulse is weak but steady." She then put her finger under his nostrils. "Yep, and still breathing. He's alive."

Tammy came running down the stairs with a blue, dusty towel.

"Shake it out a bit; we can't contaminate the cut with dust." Manda ordered, still trying to keep Andy in a steady position. Tammy shook the towel out and dust filled the air, surrounding them like a cloud of fog which disappeared into the air. Manda grabbed the towel off her and held the towel tightly on the side of his head.

"Right, he's alive, but he's not conscious. We need to get him to the hospital; it's the only place with all the supplies I need." She rambled in a panic.

"What do you know about treating wounds?" Flynn asked inquisitively, as he helped Manda pick Andy up from the floor.

"No time to explain, all I'll say is that I've had some training in medical practices. Now come on, the quicker we get him there, the quicker we can help him. Rhys, go get some food and any drinks you can find. There's no telling how long we might be staying there. Flynn help me get Andy out into my car, Tammy run into the kitchen and get my car keys from the key hooks, go!" She barked when the teenager did not instantly move. Rhys and Tammy headed for the kitchen and Manda and Flynn carried Andy's body out the door cautiously.

Rhys threw the cupboard door and grabbed a plastic shopping bag from the side. He packed it with all the pre-cooked food and any drinks he could find. Tammy, who felt her life couldn't get much worse, unhooked the car keys in a defeated manner and followed Rhys out towards the front door. Outside, Manda left Andy in Flynn's possession and took the keys from Tammy; jamming the keys into the lock, the central locking clicked and the group scrambled in. The keys went in and turned, Manda shove her foot on the accelerator and the car shot out of the drive and round the right corner.

Tammy and Flynn sat Andy up and strapped him onto the back seat.

Manda looked into the rear view mirror. "Yeah, that's right. Keep him upright, so if he's sick he won't choke on it." She babbled, then returning her focus to the road. The roads were clear, no cars had touched them for up to seven months; it gave Manda a sense of road authority, as though she was a police car and was given right of way. The car was coming to the end of Masterton road and a large roundabout stood in their way. Manda put her foot down on the break early enough to avoid collision and spun the steering wheel sharply to the left, and then again to the right to self-right the car. Round the roundabout the car flew.

"Are you sure you know where we're going?" Flynn asked cautiously.

"Yes I'm sure. I've lived here all my life don't forget." She tried to answer whilst navigating the twisty streets of Stamford.

_Andy opened his eyes. His surroundings were different, no longer was he in the house. Where was he? It was a dark tunnel, no, it was a London subway station and he was laying on the floor with blood seeping from his left shoulder. The pain was unbearable, but yet at the same time, he felt no pain; almost as if it were a dream. He pushed himself up weakly and saw Tammy standing, holding a large rifle. Laying next to him was his Dad, lifeless and covered in blood. Tammy dropped her gun and trusted herself upon him in a tight hug. _

"_We'll stay together, whatever happens." she comforted him. A sudden rush of madness ran though Andy's mind. _

"_No!" He shouted, he got up and ran along the station. _

"_Andy!" Tammy shouted after him. "Andy no!" He didn't listen, his head not in the right state. He carried on down the station. "No Andy!" _

_Andy jumped down onto the train tracks, almost losing his footing as his weakened legs wanted to give way. Tammy followed him down onto the tracks and continued to try and beckon him back. _

"_Andy!" She was now screaming. "Andy! Nooo! Noooooo! Andy!" Her voiced echoed around the subway. Andy kept running, he couldn't bare to look back, to see his sister disappearing off into the darkness. The tunnel seemed like it was closing around him, he had no idea what was wrong with him. He just had to run. _

The automatic main doors of the hospital smashed open as Flynn's rifle was thrust through them. He and Rhys kicked down the remainder of the glass and the path was now clear for Manda and Tammy to carry Andy in. The two men led the way into reception, holding their guns yet again. The trip to the hospital had been a hard one and both were running relatively low on ammo.

"Right, surgery is down the left corridor." Manda informed them. The group proceeded down the corridor until they came by a sign labelled _Surgery_. Flynn and Rhys kicked the doors in and the others rushed through. Manda ran to a nearby stretcher and placed Andy gently down onto it.

"Pain killers!" She demanded and wheeled Andy into the centre of the room. "Oh, and adrenaline!"

Tammy raided the cupboards and found a tup of pain killers. She threw them to Manda and searched for the adrenaline.

"There's no adrenaline!" She panicked.

"Never mind. We can still do this, it'll just be a bit more painful for Andy." Manda replied. She opened Andy's right eye and noticed. It was bloodshot. She knew exactly what that was a sign of. She kept it to herself, as she didn't want anyone to panic. "He's in a coma, but if I stitch his head wound up, he should come around soon." She placed the laptop on the side and beckoned to Tammy to look after her brother for a few seconds. She proceeded to open a drawer and pull out a needle and some thread.

"No time or electricity to shave his head, so I'll have to work round the hair." She rambled, not necessarily to anyone but herself. The needle was threaded, Tammy brushed some of Andy's hair out the way and Manda stuck the needle into his head.

_Clutching his head, Andy limped up onto the next subway station. It felt like hours since he had started running through the tunnel. The overwhelming pain in his head was getting worse and worse as he got further and further into the station; it was almost as if someone was sticking a hot needle into his temple. He continued running until his legs could carry him no further and he collapsed onto a bench, holding onto the wound on his shoulder, trying to stem the flow of blood. His ears pricked up as he heard a rattling noise coming from the tunnel he had just emerged from. It sounded like… but it couldn't have been. It was! Andy couldn't believe what he was seeing, a train bustled out of the tunnel and as it whizzed by, a familiar woman shot by in the window. _

_The train screeched to a halt and the automatic doors opened, just as spaceship doors would open in a sci-fi film. Andy decided to get on board and find out who the woman was; so he got up from the bench and stepped through the doors of the train. The train started moving, but it felt odd to him; it didn't feel like he was on a moving train at all, once again making it feel like a dream. As he walked through the carriage, people, left and right, stared at him. It was an uncomfortable and claustrophobic and Andy started to push his way through the crowd. His blood rushed faster and faster as the crowd thinned and he reached the end of the carriage. _

_The sight from the window was blackened as the next carriage on was in total darkness. But through that carriage was the familiar woman; she stood there against the window with long brown hair and soft fair face. It was Andy's Mother, his dead mother. He pulled the door open and ran through the darkness, desperate to see his Mum one more time. He entered the carriage she was in and she opened her arms to gesture a hug, he approached her and took the gesture with equally open arms. They embraced like they hadn't embraced for seven months. It felt so good, to be reunited with her, who he thought was long dead. She stroked his long hair and he clung on tightly. He could feel the warmth radiated from her body, the love. _

"_I'll never leave again, my baby. Never again." She reassured him, whilst still hugging him closely. But just as she spoke these words, she began to fade away, as did the carriage around Andy and the subway. _

"_Mum!" He shouted at the top of his voice, but before he could get any reaction, his eyes drifted shut…_

Manda had just finished stitching Andy's head up when she realised she couldn't hook him up to a heart monitor.

"Shit!" She exclaimed. "No power!" She knew that someone would have to be with him at all times, to make sure his heart kept beating.

"Flynn, Rhys, could you possibly go and check the canteen for any food please?" She asked politely. The boys nodded and left the room.

Manda turned to Tammy and got straight to business. "Right, so he's infected. How long have you known?"

Speechless, Tammy tried to defend herself. "Infected? I didn't know he was infected."

"Don't try it. I know you know. You two have always been a little bit distant from us adults. Now, explain." Manda replied sternly in a motherly voice.

Tammy readied herself and started to explain the events that happened on the isle of Dog all those 29 days ago. "Andy and I were on a school trip to Spain when the initial outbreak happened, but 28 weeks after that we got flown back into the country. There we met up with Dad again, but Mum had allegedly died." A tear rolled down her left cheek. "Me and Andy broke out of the safe area to return home and there Andy found Mum still alive. We got put in quarantine over night, until it turned out that there was another outbreak of the virus. We managed to get away with the help of two soldiers called Scarlet and Doyle, but Andy told me that Dad had been infected. Eventually, Doyle got killed by some other soldiers and Dad killed Scarlet. Then just as I managed to find Andy in the subway, Dad had beaten me to him and bit him in the shoulder, infecting him." She wiped the tear from her cheek and closed her eyes.

"But that doesn't answer the big question." Manda continued. "If he's infected, and I know he is, why doesn't he show any major violent symptoms?"

Tammy opened her eyes once more. "Well, I did hear Scarlet say something, when were in Regents Park. She said something about special blood and immunity. So my guess is that Andy carries the special blood. I also believe it has something to do with his different coloured eyes."

"His heterochromia." Manda repeated. "It could well be. Thanks for telling me all this. I won't tell the other two, I promise."

"Thanks Manda." Tammy smiled, for some reason, she felt close to Manda, a closeness she had only ever experienced with her Mother before her and Andy went on that trip.

Little did Manda and Tammy know, Flynn and Rhys were both listening into the conversation from the other side of the surgery room door. Flynn, as usual, didn't take being lied to in the best of ways. He kicked the wall and stormed off into the main reception area. Rhys sighed, once again he had to act like the peace maker and he followed his short-tempered comrade.

"Please don't kick off." He begged. "I know it's wrong for them not to tell us, but it's nothing big is it?" Something was different this time, Flynn seemed more relaxed; sure he had kicked the wall, but now he seemed to think things through more.

"I know it's wrong, but we have a duty now. Didn't you hear the little girl? She said her brother is immune to infection. That means he might be the key to immunity." He remembered back to when Doyle told him the kids were special; now he knew why exactly. "It doesn't matter if they don't tell us. Just don't let on that we know." Rhys nodded in agreement. Then they remembered what Manda had sent them off to do, they were meant to be going to the canteen. They rushed off and left the waiting room empty.

_Andy once again opened his eyes. There was no subway, no trains and no blood. This time he was in his bedroom, back in his old house in London. He pushed the quilt off and noticed he was in the same exact clothes, red jacket, blue shirt, jeans and converse. From what he could tell, everything was silent, no noise, nothing. Steadily, he self-righted himself and stood up out of bed. Everything was how it used to be, Doctor Who posters on his wall, the Playstation 2 sitting in the corner and his pile of superhero films stacked up on a shelf. It felt weird to be in his house again, it hadn't been long but it felt like a lifetime, although something felt different, not quite right. He drew back his curtains and his suspicions were proved correct. All that was displayed outside was a billowing, ongoing landscape of nothingness. It was a bright white like a void. _

_Shocked, Andy staggered back with wide eyes. He opened his door and ran downstairs, almost losing his footing on the stairs. In the kitchen, at down at the table was his Mum and Dad, just like they did back in the days before infection. Not necessarily doing anything, they both sat smiling._

"_What took ye so long son?" his Dad asked in his strong Scottish accent. "Ye gonna be late for school." _

"_Where's Tam?!" Andy demanded. But his parents didn't respond to his question. _

"_Come on, get some toast, then I'll give ye and Tammy a lift." His Dad said, taking no notice of his last question. To Andy's surprise, from beside him a boy with long blonde hair and a black school uniform strode past, it was him. "First day at secondary school, big event eh?" _

_Andy glanced over to the calendar they used to display on the wall. It read 1st__ September 2005. It was one and a half years ago! He was seeing the events of that day played out, with him in the middle of it all. _

"_Where's your Sister? We're gonna be late." His Dad said, getting up from his chair and grabbing the car keys. "Tammy! Come on, we've gotta be leaving!" Tammy came running down the stairs._

"_As if I'm in any hurry to start year 11." She announced. "Last year equals exams, and a lot of them." _

"_Ey ey ey, don't get stroppy with me missy!" He replied and gave her that fatherly smile._

_Andy's Mum rose from her chair and kissed his younger self on the head. _

"_Have a good first day sweetie." She said and passed him his backpack. "Remember, we won't be here when you get back, so Tammy will walk you home and let you in. Speaking of whom, aren't you going to bother to say goodbye, or shall I assume it's that time of the month?" _

_Tammy rolled her eyes in the background and they were off. _

Night time fell on Stamford, the group was still left vulnerable at the hospital due to Andy's coma. Flynn was on the roof as defence, MP5 at the ready with the scope attached. The cold April air froze him to a bone as the wind blew against his face. He and Rhys had nabbed a pair of radios from the main desk, so they were able to keep in contact. He had been up there a few hours now and had managed to keep off a few ambushes from the infected. His ammo was starting to wear thin.

"Part of me wishes something would happen tonight." He joked down the radio. "I'm freezing my ass of up here." The cold was numbing on his skin.

Rhys' voice laughed through the speaker grill. "Stop whining, and keep your eyes open."

The one thing Flynn could really do with was a fag, he had been craving for nicotine for some time now, though he had noticed that the events happening around him helped him take his mind of them; hence part of him wanting something interesting to happen. He spat on the floor beside him and noticed some movement outside the gates to the hospital car park. He looked through his scope and noticed a lone infected running towards the building. Though like usual, one shot from the machinegun and it fell to the ground in defeat. The shot was loud and rang around the whole of Stamford.

Back in the building, Manda and Tammy sat talking, whilst Rhys was monitoring Andy.

"I've got an idea." Manda started. "I've been thinking about Andy's qualities, and I thought I should examine his blood. It was the right thing to do, as I've discovered strange antibodies in it that seem to be able to fight the infection off."

"Well, that's great news." Tammy replied weakly, the day had taken it out of her and all she wanted was her comfy bed.

"One problem though." Manda got up and retrieved her laptop; she showed Tammy the programme she was running and there was a big _error _sign displayed. "I'm trying to run a programme which could help me splice these cells from his blood. But the tech-"

"What, you can't do that on a laptop." Tammy laughed the prospect off.

"It's all government hush hush. So the public aren't to know." She replied in a rushed manner.

Tammy was in awe. "Government? Exactly what did you do for a living?" She was enthralled at how mysterious Manda was, no matter how well she thought she knew her, there was always new layers waiting to be peeled back.

Ignoring her comment, Manda continued. "I own the right technology, but it's in my office at Cambridge University. We can't go now due to Andy's condition, but once he comes round we have to go. For all we know, the cells in his blood could hold the key to a cure." Tammy nodded in agreement at the sentiment and stood up from the chair. She left Manda's company and took over watching Andy, making sure he was still breathing, making sure he was still alive.

Flynn's breath created a mist in the cold air as he breathed. Hunger was starting to take it's toll and he felt his concentration slipping. He was starting to drop off to sleep, when he heard a noise. The noise of a crowd, an angry crowd, an angry crowd out to kill. He looked down his scope and to his horror, he saw them. He saw the infected. A large crowd of them running through the car park, there must have been about twenty of them. They must have been alerted by his earlier shot. There was no way he could handle a whole crowd, but he had to do his best; he had to hold some of them off whilst the rest of the group hid.

"Rhys!" He shouted down the radio. "We have been breached. I repeat. We have been breached! Infected heading your way, get the girls and the boy to a safe place and stay there, silently!" He aimed and managed to take a few of them out, but the onslaught was constant, and eventually time was up and the infected entered the hospital.

"We have to find somewhere safe!" Rhys bellowed as he ran over to Andy and lifted him up, putting the boy's arms round his shoulders and carried him. "Think Manda you seem to know this place well, what's the safest place here?"

She thought for a moment then heard the crash of feet pounding down the corridor. "There's no time to worry about it now. Barricade that door!" She leaped over to Rhys and took Andy out of his arms. "I'll take him and Tammy into the back room. You create a barricade." Reluctantly, Rhys nodded and went to look outside the door.

Manda and Tammy retrieved the laptop and entered the back room of the casualty ward and waited for Rhys to come. The back room was littered with files and contained a row of three lockers. Manda laid Andy down on a desk which stood next to the wall and used the laptop as a pillow to keep his head lifted. She waited at the door for Rhys to hurry back.

"What are we going to do if they get in?" Tammy panicked, breathing fast and hard.

"Then we keep silent. You got that?" Manda replied. Tammy nodded sat down on the floor, back to the white plastered wall.

Rhys peered out the door. There was nothing there… yet, but then he saw the first of the crowd run round the corner. He slammed the door shut and pushed a mountain of chairs and any operating equipment he could find in front of it.

"They're coming!" He shouted towards the girls and joined them in the back room. "Where can we hide?" He looked around and noticed the lockers. "There's only three."

"You and Tammy get in them." Manda insisted. "And then we can put Andy in the other one. You don't need me to hold you back, but you, the kids need you."

"No!" Rhys responded. "They've got Flynn haven't they? And they need you to get Andy's blood out. Please don't ask how I know about that and just get in the locker!" Before she could argue back, Rhys had shoved her into one of them and Tammy placed Andy into one, before entering her own.

"You don't have to do this Rhys!" Manda's voice bellowed out of the locker. "That may be shatter proof glass, but I can't promise it'll keep you alive!"

Rhys watched as the barricade in front of the door was knocked down and the infected breached the room. He took a deep breath and prepared himself.


	5. The Escape

**Author's note: The Astericks still seem to go walkabouts when I upload chapters, so I don't really know what to do. I think the scene changes are relatively obvious, so enjoy chapter five.**

Chapter Five

Bang! The infected rammed the glass with their fists. Bang! And again. Bang! And again. Rhys was helpless, all that was between him and certain death was a pane of shatterproof glass. Even then Manda had told him there wasn't a guarantee it would hold that long. He hand shook beyond belief as he reached for his handgun. Was it worth it? Trying to fight back, what would it gain? Would it ensure his survival, or just endanger his friends? The amount of different thoughts running through his mind was unbearable, he was unable to concentrate on just one, his head was in a complete muddle.

Flynn packed up the stand for his gun and lent it against the rim of the roof.

A voice shouted through his radio. "Flynn! Get your arse down here now!" It was Rhys, panic ringing through his voice.

"Where are you? Are you okay?" Flynn replied quickly.

"We're stuck in an extra room in surgery. The others are hiding in the surgery lockers, but there's only three. Get here quick!" Flynn clicked his radio off and Started for the stairs. His feet pummelled the metal stairs, his heart beating twice as hard. He had to find a different weapon. There was no way he could take out that many infected with the limited ammo in his gun. And he didn't want to risk a full blown fight with them. He had to weaken them first. He searched his pockets for anything that could be used. He couldn't risk letting off a grenade in the hospital, but then he found a lighter. An idea struck him; Molotov cocktails!

_Andy looked around him. Where was he this time? It was the Lake District, just like where his family went for holidays. He remembered the last time they went here, it was in 2004, but he couldn't quite remember why they never came back. He was in a forest, the wind blew through the trees, whistling as it shook the branches. Wildlife all around him chirping the noises of nature that he hadn't heard for months. _

"_Come on Dad!" He heard a voice call. Once again, it was a boy with flowing blonde hair and once again he recognised him. Once again, it was his younger self. "Dad, hurry up!" he ran out from amongst the trees. He was roughly ten years old and was wearing a red t-shirt, beige shorts and black converse. The older Andy looked down at his own shoes, now he remembered why the shoes reminded him of this place, this was the holiday when he had the scariest experience of his life. _

"_Don't stray to far wee man!" Don shouted after the younger Andy. He was wearing embarrassing Dad shorts and a white polo shirt. Andy wanted this vision to end now, he knew exactly what was coming and had no desire to witness it happen all over again. He started pounded himself on the head for it to stop, but it wouldn't. Smack after smack against his face, he tried to wake himself up, but he wouldn't. He gave up and decided just to get it over with. He followed, strolling next to his Dad, who didn't even know he was there; it was like being a ghost. _

_The woodland was breaking and a sign lay flat on the ground reading, Danger! Deep pot and rabbit holes ahead! Andy noticed that neither his younger self or his Dad had noticed it. As the younger Andy continued to run in front, his feet slipped and the floor caved in around him. Andy watched as the boy fell out of sight into the ground. He had fell into a small rabbit hole, just wide enough to fit him in, but not wide enough to allow any proper movement. His arms were literally pinned to his sides and his legs were knee deep in mud. The real Andy fell to his knees and his arms also started to feel pinned to his sides, he almost looked like a child imitating a worm. He could feel everything that his younger self could, he was reacting in the same exact way. _

_Mud started crumbling in on the past Andy and was covering his head. His Dad ran over to where he was buried and tried to keep the mud from covering his face. _

"_Dad help!" He cried, and Andy echoed. Don tried his best to dig the mud away from around his son, it seemed impossible. As mud entered young Andy's mouth, the other Andy also felt the coarse feel of it in his mouth as well. _

"_Andy! Andy, spit it out quick!" Don kept panicking. _

"_Heeelp!" Andy screamed, writhing on the floor and choking, with his limbs still stiff and unmovable. "It's getting in!" More mud spluttered from his mouth. His arms snapped free and he looked over to his Dad who had managed to free his younger self's arms and was now pulling on them. _

"_Wake up!" He screamed to himself. Just as he screamed, his Dad pulled at his younger self one more time, and his legs were released. _

Andy's eyes snapped open, but yet the claustrophobic feel of being trapped in the pot hole was still there. He looked around him and it was total darkness, except for three grills straight ahead of him.

"What? Where am I now?" He shouted, as loud as he could, after which he thought; in his last visions, no one were able to hear him.

Then a voice from beside came as a surprise to him. "Andy! You're awake, no time to celebrate, just keep completely silent." It was Manda's voice. He must be back in the real world; even though he was aware no one could see him, he nodded silently. Taking deep breath, he tried to relax and not think about the tight space he was currently in.

Flynn bashed the door of the Staff Room down. He had narrowly avoided being detected by the infected and was now searching the cupboards for any traces of alcohol. He reached one labelled _Dr. Williams _and opened the door. In it were three big bottles of whiskey.

"Result." He whispered to himself. He grabbed a couple of towels from beside the staff sink and stuffed them into the small openings on top of the whiskey bottles.

"Rhys, you still there?" he asked down his radio and waited for a reply.

"Yes I am. Andy's woken up, we need you here now!" He could hear bashes in the background and realised just how much danger Rhys was in. Before leaving, he grabbed some discarded Ambulance keys from the side.

Bang! A crack appeared in the glass and Rhys gulped. He knew his time was nearly over, but he was happy with the knowledge that the others were safely hidden. All hope he had now rested on Flynn getting down there in time, before the infected break through the glass. The infected at the front was a man, about 20 years old, long brown hair and red bloodshot eyes. This moment of tranquillity before the storm that Rhys was experiencing gave him time to think about them. He didn't want to, because it was heartbreaking, but all he had to see was a group of them viciously pounding at the glass. They are still human, just trapped in a constant mentality of rage; he wondered if they could remember anything about their families or friends. He shook his head to get the thought away, but - bang! Another punch and the crack grew. If Flynn was going to come at all, now would be a good time.

The infected man gave one final punch and with a smash, his hand thrust through the window. But instead of smashing, it left merely a fist shaped hole in it.

Rhys, shaking beyond belief switched his radio on. "Flynn, I'm sorry, it's over. They've got in, I'm as good as dead." He tried to stay strong, and refused to lose his dignity by crying.

"Don't say that! Look, back in London, when we were in District One, I was working with a mate of mine called Jack Doyle. I made a mistake, I had the chance to save him, the kids and a couple of others. But I did the wrong thing and refused them, I told Doyle that I'd take him, but not the others. Because of my decision, Doyle died. I'm not prepared to make such a stupid decision again. I am coming!" Flynn had finally realised what he had to do. Rhys was speechless. His attention was grabbed once again by the infected who had reached his hands into the hole and started to rip the glass away, with no feeling of pain whatsoever.

Rhys braced himself and then he noticed a man in the doorway holding a bottle. He tried to make out who the man was, but through the infected, it was hard to tell.

"Come on then you bastards!" The man called, Rhys recognised the voice as Flynn's. But before he could take a sigh of relief, he noticed the one infected still ripping the glass away. Flynn, flicked his lighter and set the towel in the first bottle alight. He readied his gun and threw the first Molotov into the room, it exploded with a smash and three infected were set on fire. Rage filled Flynn as he lit the next Molotov and it flew through the air and smashed onto another three infected. He only had one bottle left, he had to make it mean something, as there was four others in the room and ten others in the hospital. With all his might he lobbed the last bottle in and managed to hit three of the last four.

"Not this time!" He screamed at the infected as his gun pumped bullets into them. Little to his knowledge, there was still one at the back of the room, ripping its way through the shatterproof glass.

The hole was now just big enough to fit a head through. The infected, desperate to get into the room starting pounding at the outsides of the hole and eventually, it widened and widened until the infected could poke his torso through. He did so and Rhys was froze to the spot. The infected started to shake and then started gagging. Wondering why it wasn't attacking, Rhys leant forwards slightly. Before he had a chance to pull back, a stream of blood flew out of the infected's mouth. He tried to shield his face, but it was too late, a drop of blood landed in Rhys' mouth.

Manda, Tammy and Andy all stood in their lockers, silent with their eyes closed, unaware of anything happening outside. Little did they know, Rhys was experiencing the most pain he had ever felt. He could feel the simultaneous blood vessels pop in his body as he filled with rage and hatred. He was slowly losing control over his body, his arms flew around and he started head butting the wall. Rather than speaking, when he opened his mouths, a series of grunts blurted out. His muscles contracted and relaxed constantly, causing him to fall to the ground and smack the floor.

Flynn crept up and took a well placed shot to the other infected's head, before peering through the window to see Rhys regurgitating blood onto the floor. The shock had him lost for words, he failed, he didn't keep his promise to save him. He looked into his new friend's eyes and all sign of Rhys were gone, they were dyed red and showed nothing but anger. He knew what had to be done, but it didn't make it any easier to do. He took a deep breath, pointed his gun at Rhys' head, closed his eyes and mouth and pulled the trigger. Rhys' head exploded in a shower of flesh and bones. Flynn was distraught, but he couldn't linger on such thoughts, there were still many infected infesting the hospital, so he had to get the others and leave quickly.

"It's alright to come out now." Flynn's voice called. Manda and Tammy exited calmly, whilst Andy bashed the locker door open and threw himself to the ground breathing abnormally fast. The claustrophobic atmosphere of the locker had become too much. He gagged as he lifted himself slightly, noticing that he had landed stomach-first right in a pool of blood and sick. Even more traumatising, he looked to his left to notice Rhys' body which was lacking a head. He screamed and jumped up to his feet into Tammy's arms.

Manda was horrified. "Oh Rhys…" She didn't cry as she hadn't had much time to get to know him in, but she knew how close Flynn and the kids were to him. "We can stay and mourn if you want." She said to Flynn, who was breathing heavily

"No." He replied simply. "We have to keep on the move. No time to waste." He showed no emotion, much like Tammy back at the start of the day.

"But he's just died, don't you even care?" Manda started. "Don't you even-"

"Of course I care!" He shouted back, cutting Manda off. "Now come on, we can't stay here." He took Rhys' handgun from his holster and shoved it in Manda's hand. Manda led Andy and Tammy out of the room. Flynn followed, took one last look at Rhys' body and shook his head in disgrace.

Andy was dazed and confused. Having just woken up after almost a whole day, he hadn't quite found his feet yet. It was more like he was being dragged along by Tammy. They were running down the corridor leading to the waiting room, on their way to escape. Flynn was in front, distancing himself slightly, Manda was in the middle holding back the tears feeling slightly that it was her fault and Andy and Tammy were at the back trying to keep up due to Andy's near immobility. They reached the waiting room and Flynn checked around for the infected. There were none, so the group exited through the smashed automatic doors. They ran for the closest ambulance and Flynn tried the keys he had picked up.

"Come on, come on." He muttered to himself. Luckily, they worked and Flynn pulled the door open and chucked the keys to Manda.

Manda swung round to the back and opened the back doors and then proceeded to the other front door. Andy and Tammy climbed into the back, Tammy giving her brother a hand. Flynn plugged the keys into the ignition and they were off. The headlights on the ambulance shone brightly and it flew out the gates of the hospital. Manda was confused as it seemed weird how Flynn was ready to leave Rhys' body that fast.

"Well? Explain." She started. Flynn stayed silent, concentrating on the road. "Flynn please just speak." Still, Flynn said nothing. He kept his eyes on the road, no streetlamps made the streets look bathed in a cloud of thick darkness.

Then he piped up. "I overheard you talking about Andy's blood. That he's special. That must have been what Doyle meant all those weeks ago." In the back seats, Andy's ears pricked up at the mention of his name, but Flynn left no chance for him to talk. "Obviously you didn't have time to do anything with it did you?" He nodded in the direction of Manda's laptop.

"No." She replied. "But if I had all my equipment on me, I'd be able to."

"And where's your equipment?" Flynn asked instantly.

"In Cambridge. I'd love to think we'd make it there, but it seems impossible with only two guns and an ambulance."

Flynn keyed _Cambridge _into the ambulance satnav violently and got the directions up. He put his foot onto the accelerator and the vehicle sped forwards. Andy was still feeling lethargic and his eyes would droop every now and again.

"Is Rhys dead?" He asked sleepily. His head rested on Tammy's shoulder, who's in turn was rested on his head.

"Yeah, yeah he is." She said back, also fighting the urge to fall asleep. She didn't really know what else to say about it. None of them had known him for long and therefore they didn't really know anything about him. There was an awkward silence with that fact and for a few minutes, the only noise that could be heard was the engine of the vehicle.

"We're going to be safe aren't we?" Andy slurred. He laid down and rested his head on Tammy's lap.

She moved around a bit to get comfy and tidied his crumpled jacket a bit. "Yeah, I'll keep you safe."

The streets of Stamford were oddly silent. Manda had never heard them like it before the infection. People would visit constantly because of the Friday market, Burghley house, the River Welland and the Victorian architecture. The streets were littered with old pieces of rubbish creeping along the path; houses were boarded up with windows and doors smashed in; cars abandoned on the road and chaos everywhere she looked. The ambulance shot past the George hotel as it neared the exit of the town.

"Manda, I'd like you to know something. Something I've kept to myself for a while now, and I've only ever told Rhys." Flynn finally spoke. "Because of my own stupidity, a close friend of mine died. His name was Doyle and he was a great man and a great soldier. Then tonight, I wasn't quick enough to Save Rhys."

"It wasn't your fault." Manda reassured him. "There was really nothing you could have done. You did your-"

"I could have been quicker." He cut her off. "I vow to you, I promise you I will not bestow the same fate upon you or the kids." A tear rolled down his cheek, Manda pretended not to notice. He looked at her and she raised a smile for him. Flynn and Manda had started to understand each other. Manda knew how close Flynn was to Rhys and how much they had shared with each other, about his family and Rhys' girlfriend. But Rhys' death had opened Flynn's eyes to how important Manda, Andy and Tammy were to him. It was like having his family with him again.

Flynn noticed something up ahead. Something big and metal. There was a message sprayed on it in a

"Shit!" He shouted and accelerated the ambulance to the object, parking it so the headlights made the message visible. It was a thick pile up of cars. He wondered if he'd be able to push them, but thought it better not to risk it. He jumped out the driver's seat and read the message. It read _No vehicles beyond this point, Stamford preservation society. _An un bearable sense of dread ran through Flynn's mind as he knew what they had to do. He took his time trudging back to his vehicle. Step by step he had no idea how to break the news to Manda. He sidled back into his seat and sighed.

"What's up? What did it say?" She asked panicky. She started to sweat uncontrollably as she awaited the answer.

"Our road trip is about to get ten times harder." Flynn muttered to her. "We're going to have to continue on foot."


	6. The Start of the Journey

**Author's Not - Right, well this was a bugger to write. I did have a completely different idea which included them meeting a crazed survivor, but that's another fanfic... ;)**

Chapter Six

"Is there no other way? Can we not get the ambulance out of another exit?" Manda asked exasperated. She didn't want to risk Andy or Tammy's lives.

Flynn thought for a moment, then came to a conclusion. "No, we don't have another choice, either we leave now, or we waste valuable time looking for another exit, which might not even exist. Manda understood and opened her door. She tried to think a way of explaining the situation to them without worrying them. There was no easy way about it, she just had to tell them the truth and ask them to face the facts.

"Right kids, I have some good news and some bad news." she called as she swung the back doors open. "Good news is, we know where we're going. Bad news is, we have no transport to get us there." Andy and Tammy woke up in a shock, not completely registering what Manda had said. "We're going to have to walk to Cambridge."

"Walk to Cambridge?" Tammy asked sleepily and nudged her brother to get off her lap. She brushed her hands through her hair and rubbed her eyes before jumping out the back of the ambulance.

"Where are we going?" Mumbled Andy, he was still half asleep and not really listening to any of the conversation.

"We're off to Cambridge." Tammy gave him a hand out the ambulance. Andy wondered why Cambridge was so important, but his mind was all over the place so it seemed insignificant. So many thoughts were rushing through his head. _Why am I feeling like this? Why do I always have a headache? Why does it hurt so much?_ It was all a mystery to him, for he was the only one not to know about his own infection.

Flynn gave the message once last look. "Stamford Preservation Society? What a fucking joke." He searched for a groove to use to start climbing, using his hands to feel for any holes or ledges. The metal of the cars was freezing to the touch, and the paint crumbled into Flynn's hand. Shaking it away, he found a significantly big ledge that they could use to climb. "Manda! I think I've got a way over." He watched as the woman grabbed her laptop from the vehicle and herded Andy and Tammy towards the pileup.

"I'll go first." She offered. "Then I'll keep my eye out for any infected." Flynn nodded and helped her reach the ledge. She pulled herself up, trying not to let her hands slip on the rust. She was relieved she wasn't wearing heels; it would have been ten times harder to scale these cars if she had done.

With one last push, she made it to the top of the pile of cars and gained her balance as the various roofs were dented and broken.

"Right, now send Andy up!" She beckoned. Flynn turned to get them and they weren't there.

"Andy! Tammy!" He called. "Where are you?" As he called, two strobes of light shot out from behind the ambulance, followed by the two kids carrying two torches each.

"We're going to need light if we're walking." Tammy explained and handed Flynn a torch.

Taking it in hand, he pointed it at her. "Right, but any sign of the infected, we switch them off. At least then we'd have some cover from them." Tammy nodded and cupped her hand against the cars. Flynn did the same and Andy placed his feet in each of their palms. They pushed up on his feet until Manda was able to reach for his hands and pull him up. He passed her his spare torch and they both shone them down the other side of the pile up. As far as they could tell, it was all safe.

"Manda, Tammy's coming up." Flynn said. Manda jumped back to help Tammy, grabbing her arms and lifting her up, just Flynn left to go.

Manda shone the torch down the street; there was still no sign of the infected, which she found odd. It was still silent and her warm breath created a cloud of steam in her torchlight. Her eyes scanned the darkness which Shrouded the streets in front of her; she wondered if there were any other survivors in Stamford, any of her friends. By the looks of things, she had been the only one, all was silent and all was dark. She shone the torch in the other direction again, breathing heavily. She was worried about what might be lying in the fields and forests on the way to Cambridge. As her torch shone into the distance, she noticed something move; something person shaped, could it be a survivor? She took a few steps to the edge of the pile up and squinted to see into the distance, shining the torch frantically to try and see it again. Her breathing deepened, her eyesight focused, her palms sweated, her grip of the torch tightened.

"What's the matter Manda? Seen a spook?" Flynn's voice made her jump and she lost her footing. He grabbed her arm and pulled her back up.

"Don't do that!" She smacked him on the arm and took a sigh of relief. Smiling, he spat off the edge and patted her on the shoulder.

One by one, the group jumped down to the other side of the pile up. Flynn switched his torch off and attached the night vision sight to his MP5.

"Right guys, I can see most of the way ahead. Keep your torches on until I tell you okay?" He informed the others. They nodded and shone their torches ahead; taking small steps and being as quiet as possible. "Now we're going to have to find somewhere to stay and sleep, it's much too dangerous to travel at night."

"But you said the dark would give us more cover." Manda questioned.

"Would you rather risk your life sleeping in broad daylight?" He countered. She understood and they continued silently.

"Over here!" Flynn called to the others. He had noticed two bottle shaped cottages in his scope. "Shine your torches on me and follow." The group obeyed and kept their torches pointed at his back. He led them down the road leading to the cottages, noticing a change in texture on the floor. "Right, mind your step, there's a curb and then it's gravel." Tammy and Andy held hands, guiding each other along, with Manda holding Tammy's. They took their first steps onto the gravel and Andy felt his new shoes sink down. It was an odd experience walking in the dark unable to see, but not a new one for him or his sister. It reminded him of being in the subway with Tammy and Scarlet, just before they were separated. But then, after that his memory was clouded. He knew his Dad was involved, but he couldn't quite remember what had happened. He had had this problem since he passed out in the subway; all he knew was Tammy had told him he wasn't infected and had never told him the details of the events in the subway. He wanted Tammy to tell him the truth, but decided to let her do it in her own time.

Flynn kicked at the door a couple of times but it didn't give in. He aimed his gun at the lock and shot at it. The bullet pierced the door and he slowly turned the doorknob; the door creaked open and Flynn peered down his scope.

"It's all clear as far as I can see." He said cautiously. "Manda, there's some candles on the table, take this lighter and light them up."

"But we have torches." Tammy butted in.

"Yes, and we don't want to waste the batteries in them." He handed his lighter to Manda and let her in first. "Tammy with me, we're gonna give this cottage a proper search. Take a candle off Manda. Andy, stay here with Manda." Manda handed Tammy one of the newly lit candles and Flynn and Tammy left to explore.

The candles revealed the room to be a small dining room and kitchen. The walls were a musty brown colour and everything was covered in a thick layer of dust. Dead flies littered the furniture and rotting food left a sour smell in the air, not that Manda or Andy could tell as they had grown accustom to it by now. The young boy pulled out a fly ridden chair and slumped onto it. Manda pulled one out next to him and opened her laptop up.

"Can I go on the internet?" Andy asked inquisitively.

"No electricity means no routers. No routers means no connection. No connection means no internet, sorry." She smiled sweetly.

"If there's no electricity, how are you can use the computer?"

"Well it's using a battery." She replied again, typing the log in.

"Oh yeah." He laughed. "But what happens when the battery dies? No more laptop?"

"You're a curious young lad aren't you?" She asked. "When I took the laptop, I also took a few spare battery packs. Enough to last about ten hours. I've already used one and this is almost out, so it leaves us with six more hours."

Andy rubbed some sleep out of his right eye and stood up to stretch. The day had been long and tiring and he still had visions of him in the pothole from two years ago.

"Do you remember falling down the stairs?" Manda asked him. He gave her a confused look.

"At my house, remember? You fell and hit your head." She continued.

"I remember being asleep." He started. "I don't usually remember being asleep, but I do. The last thing I remember from before that was waiting at the end of your upstairs corridor."

"Andy, you fell down the stairs and hit your head, you probably can't feel the wound as I stitched it up. You were in a coma. I'm not sure how you entered it because little falls like that don't tend to put you in one. But if you don't remember what happened then no one will ever know.?" She informed him. Slightly confused as to how serious a coma was, Andy tried to remember what had happened.

"All I remember is the dreams. I remember having cut my shoulder in the subway, seeing my Mum on a train, watching my first day at school and…" He cut short. Manda assessed the ideas in her head and started typing away on her laptop.

Flynn and Tammy joined them in the room again, with everything they had taken with them.

"Nothing, the whole place has been cleared out supplies." Flynn sighed and pulled out another chair. "Although, the living room is just big enough for us all to sleep, the carpet is a soft enough surface to sleep on. So come on, let's go catch some sleep; early start in the morning because we really need to get to Cambridge as fast as possible." Andy nodded and followed Tammy through. Manda sat still, quickly typing on the keyboard.

"Coming?" Flynn asked as he got up.

"In a minute." She replied simply and Flynn went to join the kids. Manda finished typing, _…doesn't remember anything before black outs, yet remembers dreams clearly. _

The sun rose once again on the deserted Britain, casting a burning shine in the sky. The heat was magnified through the window, right onto Andy's head. It intensified and slowly, Andy's eyes pried open; sleepily he braced himself for the imminent pain of a headache. But there was none, for the first time in weeks; he had woken up feeling normal. Once again an eerie silence had fallen upon his ears; he missed hearing the sound of planes flying in the air and buses driving past his house. The urban sounds of living in central London, the loud chatter of businessmen as he would walk to school, the lectures he would get from his English teacher for forgetting to do his homework; he missed them all.

He shook the thoughts out of his head. He didn't want to be reminded of what he was missing out on. He noticed Manda wasn't in the room and so he shook his sister to wake her up.

"Tam." He repeated, "Tam."

She rolled over onto the other side. "What's up?" She asked back.

"How long have you been awake?"

"A few minutes, why?"

Andy spent a few seconds flattening his static filled hair. "I just wondered when Manda left." He frowned as he was unable to stop it sticking up.

"Oh I think she went into the kitchen." Tammy sighed and slumped back onto her back.

Manda burst into the living room, a look of determination on her face.

"Come on! Up you get, we're wasting valuable daylight hours in here sleeping." She had in her hand a pan and a wooden spoon, a few bangs on the pan and Flynn shot up gun primed. After noticing who it was he sighed and put the safety back on.

"God damn it Manda, maybe something a little less unorthodox next time?" He whined. She smiled, shook her head and went back to the kitchen. Andy rubbed his eyes in slight surprise and got up along with his sister. Instinctively, they looked at each other and burst into laughter, something they hadn't done for a long time, for obvious reasons.

Manda pushed the door open and made sure the coast was clear, it was, there was no sign of any infected. One by one, the group crept out the door of the cottage; each of them marvelled at the shape of them, they didn't get a proper look in the dark the night before. The adjacent cottages were both shaped in the same fashion of a bottle.

"Only in Britain." Flynn said, his eyes glued on the sight. It was wonders like this that kept him motivated in getting back to his family; he was starting to realise that even though he had his family in America waiting for him, for the meantime his little group now was almost like a substitute family. Although every minute he tried to convince himself it was completely platonic, he found himself growing more attached to Andy and Tammy

"Well Manda, you're the one who knows their way around this place, you'd better lead." Flynn instructed. Manda nodded in agreement and led the way, heading to their left. She didn't know exactly where to go, but figured they could follow the road signs.

"I think," Manda started as her shoes crunched over twigs on the grassy verge next to the road, "we can make it to the nearest city, Peterborough by the end of the day, requiring we don't bump into any infected. Then we can continue onto Cambridge the day after." For such a bad situation, the burning sun sort of made up for it; the group's hopes were high. Flynn was determined to get the others to safety, Manda kept a close eye on Andy's infection, Tammy's main aim was to keep her brother safe and Andy was just confused. Nothing added up for him, Tammy repeatedly ensured him it was something else that was causing his bad condition but he was starting to realise the truth.

Flynn's radio kicked into action. He started hearing crackly voices down the other end.

"Ready Logan? - Patrol around England? - Kill every bastard infected we see!" Flynn clicked it off quickly.

Tammy stopped to a halt. "I thought America had isolated itself?" She questioned, shocked.

"They also said they're putting Britain back under quarantine, which means patrol ships and planes, which means we're could have company at any given time." Flynn retorted. "But look, let's not panic. We've got to keep a good pace going and there's no guarantee they will even fly past these parts." Tammy gave him the benefit of the doubt, but wasn't totally sure. Going with it, she continued walking. Inside, Flynn knew what he said wasn't totally true, they were bound to come searching the area soon.

After a few hours of walking, the group came towards a field of bright yellow sunflowers, towering high, almost up to Andy's stomach.

"It'd be quicker to cut through here." Manda informed them. Flynn didn't look convinced; he worried that if they went into the field, they'd be easier targets.

"Honestly, it should cut about an hour off our journey." She assured him. After a minutes thought he nodded to her and set off into the overgrown flowers. Andy found himself taking massive steps to try and keep up with the others, he was only 5ft 3 and found it difficult to step over the flowers.

He noticed his sister sniffing loudly. "Hay fever playing up?" He asked her naively.

She laughed. "Have you seen what we're standing in you muppet?" She gave him a loving nudge on the shoulder and received one back herself.

"Well not everyone is a smarty pants like you." He was never good at come backs.

"I am smart, yeah. Besides you can barely walk in it, short arse." Another nudge.

Andy brushed his hair out his eyes and behind his ears, he found it odd how it could grow so fast; still he loved it no matter what others thought of it. Tammy would occasionally call him her little sister, much to his annoyance but then she would get told off and his Mum always said it was like stroking a dog but tried to do it less as he was no longer her little baby. Once again his mind was drifting off into the days before infection, before all the madness.

Two things snapped Andy out his daydreams. Firstly, the heat of the sun which was beaming down onto his headache, which was starting to itch and hurt and the other was the faint sound of helicopter blades. Flynn also heard them and he froze in the spot, waving his head around like a dog which had heard a cat meow.

"Down!" He yelled and spread his body down into the massing sunflowers. The others followed suite and frantically tried to make themselves scarce.

"I knew they couldn't be far." He continued. "But I didn't expect them to be this close." Tammy rolled her eyes behind him, as she knew her feelings were right earlier. The two helicopters emerged above them, the rotors spinning ferociously. The two pilots were briefly glancing over the field, not looking bothered to give a thorough search.

The group lay still, waiting for the copter to pass; none of them dared to make even the slightest noise. Not even the throbbing pain now in Andy's head could make him whimper. To him, seconds seemed like hours and it felt like the copter had been hovering over them for days. Flynn noted that they weren't using sniper scopes, to the group's benefit, making it much harder for the survivors to be spotted.

"You done Logan?" Andy heard one of them shout.

The other one took one last look around. "Yeah, let's go." And they continued on past the field and down the road.

Flynn got up and wiped his head with one of his sleeves. "We're lucky they were prating around, if they were properly disciplined soldiers, we wouldn't be alive right now. And we really have to get moving, because they wouldn't be the only people patrolling this area. Manda, know anywhere we can hang low for a bit?" Manda thought for a while, looking all around her and tapping her temples with her middle fingers. Time wasn't going to stop for them, so she had to think of something fast. The she remembered something, something which had happened to her a long time ago, something she didn't like remembering.

She didn't want to suggest it, but they were running out of time and didn't have anywhere else to go.

"Manda?" Flynn repeated.

"Yeah," she snapped out of her trance, "I know just the place. It's an old abandoned industrial park just north of here." She gulped with regret and pointed past Flynn's head.

Without a word, Flynn turned around and led them off towards the factory just visible past the field of sunflowers.

Manda had sworn to herself that she would never return to this place, but now there was not other option. She closed her eyes for a few seconds, took a deep breath and followed the others.


	7. Hidden Sins

**Author's Note - I think I'll make this a regular feature now. ^_^ Well this chapter was much more fun to write than the dire re-write of chapter six. I felt I could now start delving into Manda's past a bit more, so enjoy and please feel free to review and comment. ~Ricky~**

Chapter Seven

"_Warren, don't be too harsh on her!" The man's voice called. All Manda could see was darkness; something was over her head, something rough and itchy. It smelt of soil and uncooked potatoes and the air inside it felt clammy and moist. She felt a hand press against it and it was ripped off her head, scratching the skin of her face as it went. Her eyes pried open slowly to notice it was a burlap sack in which potatoes were kept. The sun burned her eyes after she had seen nothing but the inside of the sack for the past hour; as they focused she noticed she was in some sort of industrial place. Her breath started to steady down and she tried to move her arms to brush her hair out her face. She couldn't move, her hands were tied to the back of a plastic chair and she didn't have the strength to challenge the bonds. There were two figures standing in front of her, one was small and weedy/ with brown hair, Clive; the other was just as small. but with brown stubble, Warren._

"_I'll be as harsh as I want." He retorted, and gave Manda a swift slap across the face. It stung like crazy and left a painful red mark on her cheek. "Now you ain't gonna tell no one are you darling?" He mocked. She didn't reply and received another slap. _

"_Warren come on, I think she gets the message!" The other man called. Warren ignored his workmate and grabbed Manda by the cheeks, squeezing tightly. _

"_Now, do you get me?" He shouted in her face. Manda wrestled her head out of his grip and spat in his face. _

"_That's what I think of you." She laughed. _

_Infuriated, "Get the bat!" Warren commanded Clive. He did so and retrieved it from the back of a white van parked near them and reluctantly gave it to Warren. _

"_I'll tell you what Warren." Manda started, trying to sound confident. "Come here and let me tell you something, what I really think about you." _

_The man laughed and lent in to listen. "Don't see why not, you can't do me any harm." As he lent in, Manda planted her foot into his crotch, sending him into a dizzy world of pain. He dropped the bat as he fell and Clive stood in shock. _

"_I think you really needed to tie my feet up." She sneered. "Well don't just stand there, give me a hand!" Clive, not really knowing what to do, obliged and untied her hands. _

"_What am I going to do now?" He asked furiously., but Manda had already started getting away. "Great…"_

_The factory was a labyrinth of different walkways and twists and turns. Manda found herself getting continuously lost, she didn't know if to turn left or to turn right. _

"_I knew I should have followed the path the van came from." She cursed at herself. She noticed an oil-stained generator to her left, somehow she swore she had passed it before. Her face still stung from the slaps and her head pounded violently; as she tried to stop and concentrate, she noticed Warren approaching her from in front. _

"_Where do you think you're going sweetie?" He said, wielding the same bat as he had earlier. "Let's see how you like it!" He swung it into the back of her legs, causing her to fall to her knees in pain. Her hair was yanked, pulling her head backwards. _

"_Now you ain't gonna speak are you?" He continued. _

_The pain in Manda's legs was excruciating, no measurement could describe it and tears now flowed from her eyes as she whimpered. "No, no I won't." she cried. _

"_Good, and just to make sure, have another one." Warren smacked her in the stomach and threw her to the ground. "Good girl." _

_She clutched her stomach in agony, crying into the floor. _

The doors to the facility were already pried open, as concerning as this was to him, Flynn knew this was the only real place of refuge they had from the helicopters. He stood by the door and covered the rest of the group as they filed through. As Manda entered, the memories flooded into her head, the beating, the men and the warm feeling of blood rushing against her skin; she had never told anyone about what happened. She had to lie about the bruises and cuts, saying that she had been hit by a car whilst she was in Peterborough; she was sure the lies would work until her husband found out the truth and went after the men. That was the last she had seen of him, the day after was the day of the initial outbreak.

"Right, we should have limited cover here." Flynn deduced. He set his gun down on a disused generator and sat down next to it, radio switched on.

"…Round two…Ready Logan…Guns at the ready…" And he switched it off.

He addressed the group with some rules. "Right. One, We stick together, no one runs off. Two, we switch the radio on every thirty minutes to see if the patrols have passed and three, any sign of the infected, we run deeper into the facility and find somewhere to hide." He looked up and noticed the winding boardwalks and passages, it dawned on him how that was easier said than done. He flicked the switch on the radio and turned it off. "Right, so we have half an hour to kill, any ideas how?" He clapped his hands together.

"Manda, do you still have Rhys' gun?" Flynn asked her. She had settled down a bit after being in the area for a few minutes. She reached into the inside pocket of her suit jacket and produced the gun.

"Yeah, but it only has nine bullets." She replied, squinting in the strong sunlight which hung in the air and sighing at the gun in her hand. Nine bullets, how were they going to be of any use?

"So." Flynn sat down next to her. "Where did you learn how to use a gun?" He raised an eyebrow.

"What makes you assume I can?" She tried to combat the question.

"Don't kid me Manda, the way you hold that thing, with confidence and readiness. I know you can handle it."

Embarrassed at her bad attempt at hiding the truth, Manda explained. "Well, I did a bit of private weapons training a few years ago, it was just something on the off chance. Looks like it paid off in the end."

"I guess it did." He agreed. "Could you look after the kids for a bit please? I'm just gonna go check out the area."

Manda nodded.

"Remember, check the radio every thirty minutes and don't leave this space." He patted her on the back encouragingly and followed the nearest passage. Manda looked on at Andy and Tammy saddened.

Flynn checked his own gun.

"Dang it!" He cursed to himself. "Not much ammo left." He walked slowly down the passage, it was an open roof industrial park and the generators and chimneys around him hung high in the sky. Everything had been dyed a dull grey colour and the air at ground level was musty and humid. Flynn also checked his watch, it read _10:25am. _That meant that the group had about eleven hours of light, and they couldn't waste them. Next to him was a ladder which led to the walkways above him; he started climbing, testing how much weight they would hold. Luckily, the metal stairs hadn't rusted too much in the rain over the past few months and were stable enough to hold a person's weight. Each step on them caused a metallic clanging noise to ring through the area. Reaching the top of the walkway, Flynn looked out at the horizon, squinting as the sun got in his eyes.

"Looks like I'm on look out again." He sighed to himself, before being alerted by the faint sound of rotors.

Manda was sitting alone watching as Tammy and Andy messed about. Being in the industrial park and bringing back that horrific memory was depressing beyond belief. Seeing the two of them playing together reminded her of how she always wanted to have children of her own; knowing they were now orphaned, she felt almost like a mother to them. She didn't know if they felt the same as they had been together for little over a day, but the desperation for her to let her maternal side out was consuming her. Tammy stopped to look at her and Manda watched as she told Andy to stay put and came over.

"what's up?" Tammy spoke first.

"Two things." Manda was sharp as an eagle. The months of being in hiding were paying off in her skills. "First, we really should tell him about his infection you know." She gave Tammy a stern look, who in turn sighed and looked down at her feet.

"No, I can't. How can I?" The confused teen tried to argue.

Manda cut her off. "And second, there's someone in here. Someone other than us and Flynn."

Shocked, Tammy was befuddled why Manda never told her earlier. "Well, how come you haven't called for Flynn yet?"

"Well, we _could _shout for Flynn, but then we would also alert the other person. We'll just have to sit it out and hope he doesn't reveal himself." The two of them sat quietly for a moment.

The weather was turning overcast now and the group had been in the facility for a good hour or so. Flynn was still watching out for any incoming helicopters or infected, Manda was on high alert and wielding the handgun and a long stainless steel pole she had found and Andy and Tammy were sitting bored, heads leant against each other's.

As Manda was staring down the darkened passageway of generators and metalwork, she noticed a shadow coming towards her. She held her metal pole high, she didn't want to risk using her gun as she wanted to save the bullets for a proper emergency. She motioned to the kids to stay exactly where they were and she slid sideways and leant against the generator blocking her from the shadow's view. As the shadow emerged from the passageway, without thinking Manda pulled the pole behind her head and swung it across down into the back of its head. It was a man, with rough brown hair and a skinny build. She recognised him, dropped the pole aghast and rushed to help him.

"Well well well." Manda's voice echoed. "Now who's in the loosing position?" She watched as the man opened his eyes slowly, then as he clutched the back of his head and felt the warm blood on his hands. The man focused his eyes upon her.

"This is why I didn't want to come closer earlier." He moaned. Tammy and Andy had rushed up to the scene.

"Sorry, but have you two met before?" Tammy asked.

Manda smiled in quite a sinister manner. "Oh yeah, we used to work together. And to cut a long story short, let's just say he partook in the torturing of me a few months back." She rolled her top slightly to reveal a prominent scar which angled upwards from her hip to her bellybutton.

"You're wrong!" He spluttered. "I helped you, I let you go!" Then he shrivelled back in pain.

Tammy found it difficult to watch and pulled Andy away from the scene. He struggled to stay, but Tammy was too strong for him and had him overpowered. She sat him on the ground.

"Stay right there." She demanded.

"But-"

"Don't argue, please. Just stay here and cover your ears." she cut him off before he had a chance to forward his argument.

Manda pressed her hand against the man's wound.

"You like that Clive? Eh?" She spoke through gritted teeth as the man shrieked with pain. Even she was shocked at her own desire for revenge.

"Stop it, stop it please!" Clive howled. "I didn't want any of that to happen!" Manda refused to weaken the pressure.

"You made me suffer." She hissed. "Indirectly, but you were still involved, and now I'm going to make you feel the pain I went through."

"No, but you've got to let me explain, I left the project." Clive tried to resist by pushing her off, but his limbs were to weak to do anything. Manda let go of his head and picked up the steel pole.

"I don't believe you." She held the pole high, and as she went to swing it down, she felt someone tugging on it.

"Manda don't!" She heard a voice shout; she turned round to see it was Tammy, who had taken the pole from her hands. She also noticed Andy sitting against a generator, his head buried into his legs and using his hands to cover his ears. Instantly she cooled down, realising just how angry she had gotten. With all this madness around them, the rage had managed to consume her, but in a different way.

"I'm… I'm sorry." She muttered thoughtfully, clearly in remorse for what she had done. She sat Clive up and took his black jacket off, she hoped he wouldn't react to violently. "Hold still, this is going to hurt, but not as much as it did a minute ago." She pressed the jacket up against his head and told him to leave it there for a few minutes. "Just keep that held there and it should soak most of the blood up." Clive did so and winced in more pain as the cloth covered his wound.

"If you had just let me explain." He moaned. "I left the day after you did, then Warren hunted me down and did the same." Seeing him in this much pain and knowing she was the cause of it was heartbreaking for Manda. She helped him to his feet and took the blood soaked jacket off him.

Andy came running and stood next to Tammy as she watched Manda try and make amends.

"Look, I'm really sorry Clive." Manda grovelled.

"Will you stop saying that already, I know you're sorry." He replied, shaking the incident off.

"But is there anyway that I can make it up to you?"

"Oh believe me, you already have." He said simply and darkly. The last comment made Manda wonder, but she daren't ask what he meant; right now she didn't deserve an answer. Bewildered, Tammy gave Manda a look of slight disgust as she bustled Andy over to help Clive.

Manda remembered something Flynn had told them to do earlier, she rushed over and picked up the radio. She flicked it on and heard nothing.

But then Flynn's voice came blaring down the speaker grill. "Manda, switch the goddamn radio on! They're coming back, find somewhere to hide and stay there. This time they're on foot!"

Startled, Manda shouted. "Andy, Tammy come on, we've got to find somewhere to hide."

"What about me?" Clive retorted.

"Yeah, you too, just hurry up and don't slow us down." She grabbed Tammy and Andy's hands and pulled them down the nearest alley, Clive trying to keep up behind them. She could start hearing faint helicopter blades and more voices from the radio.

"Abandoned industrial…let's go check…bring backup." A copter flew right above their heads, roaring louder than a group of jet planes.

Four men entered the main entrance to the facility, fully dressed in combat gear, wielding MP5s and speaking in strong American accents. Each of them had gas masks covering their faces.

"Checkpoint one reached." The first one informed his radio. "Logan, Jefferson go left. Riley, right with me." His comrades nodded and two of them went left whilst the other two headed right, the direction in which Manda had gone.

"Search started, eliminate all living things." The captain of the squad barked into his radio as he led Riley. His voice was gruff and old, like a war veteran's.

"Rodger." was the answer he received.

"This is the last time I let Logan head the search. We've received five life signs from in here. We're not leaving until every last one of them is dead." Both of the soldiers clicked the safety off their guns and advanced through the alley slowly.

Manda, Tammy, Andy and Clive stopped running as they reached a fork in the path.

"Which way to the exit?" Clive asked.

Manda scowled at him. "Do I look like I know?" She brushed her hand through her hair, trying to think. Her head was empty, she would have to come up with a plan on the spot. "I suppose we'll have to split up. Clive can I trust you?"

"Of course you can." He replied.

"Good, take Andy and go right, Tammy and I will go left."

"I'm not leaving Andy!" Tammy intervened. Manda pulled her to look in her eyes.

"Right now, we don't really have a choice. It'll be easier to hide if we split up into smaller groups. Now stop talking and run!" She grabbed Tammy's arm and pulled her down the left fork, Clive did the same to Andy and pulled him down the right.

Despite his wound, the adrenaline rushing through Clive's body negated any pain it inflicted on him. He spotted a small gap between two generators leading to a space underneath a flight of stairs; he swung Andy round into it and told him to go right to the back of it. Andy crept along the space, it was just big enough for him to crawl through; Clive followed him, having to crouch more, being almost double the size of the child. As Andy reached the end of the space, he noticed it bent in an L shape.

"Should we keep going?" He asked.

"No, stay here and be extremely quiet." Clive answered. Andy leant back and sat against the wall, running his hand along the bottom of the stairs above him in curiosity. Clive stayed alert, they had no weapons, so he couldn't risk them getting into a fight. For now, the best and safest thing was to sit it out.

Andy felt a slight tickle in his nose; a sneeze was coming. He tried to hold it back for as long as he could, constantly moving his feet and pulling on his hair to try and focus brainwaves in a different direction, but his attempts were fruitless. He let out a massively loud sneeze. He was unable to cover his nose or mouth in time and saliva flew out of his mouth right onto the back of Clive's head. Unbeknownst to Andy, his salvia was infected.

Clive felt the products of the sneeze land on his head and turned round to shush Andy, but suddenly, he started to feel weird, his head started spinning and he felt the blood rushing through his eyes start to warm up. He started feeling angry; angry at himself, angry at Andy, angry at the cramped space he was in, angry at everything. He started to punch the side of the little cove uncontrollably. Andy was shocked to finally realise the truth, he was infected. Both of them were; but he didn't understand why he could still think for himself whilst Clive was there losing control. He didn't have time to think, so he ran round the L shaped corner and crawled to the other exit.

On the other side of the factory, Manda and Tammy had found a little opening to take a small rest in.

"What got into you back there?" Tammy interrogated, slightly out of breath.

Manda was also trying to catch her breath. "Last year, he and another work colleague took me here and assaulted me."

"But why would they do that?"

"You know Tammy, I seem to tell you more than I've ever been able to tell anyone. Well, besides my husband." Manda changed the subject carefully. "It's nice, it helps me release some of the feelings I've been harbouring for a while." She pulled Tammy in for a hug; Tammy went with it as she enjoyed having a new mother figure in her life.

"But he knows something." She changed the subject back to Clive. "He knows something about me that I don't. I need to find out what it is, but how?" She thought for a moment, there was a lot of mystery shrouding the day her husband left; the day before infection.

"Hands up" Manda heard a voice call. "What do we have here then?" It was an American, dressed fully in military gear, gasmask and all. "It's time for you infected bitches to die." He raised his gun and pointed it directly at Manda's head.


	8. Cat and Mouse

**A/N - Ah, now we're nearing the end. A bit of scientific help from an online friend called Jo Smith, telling me that smelling salts were not the best choice... Enjoy Chapter Eight. **

Chapter Eight

"But we're not infected, you can see that." Manda stuttered. The soldier readied his hands to shoot, but then loosened his grip slightly.

"Since you're about to kick it, I suppose I could explain what we found out in London last month." he replied. "There was a woman, Alice Harris her name was, she was infected, but for some reason she didn't show any symptoms." Tammy's eyes widened at the mention of her mother, suddenly, she knew what was up with Andy.

He must have received the gift from her, as well as the heterochromic eyes. "Probably shouldn't have told you that, but you're not going to remember it for long." he tightened his grip again, but then felt a pair of hands grab his shoulders. He felt his body thrust backwards onto the floor and his head was pinned to the floor. He looked up to see an infected pushing his head down into the floor. Manda was horrified to see the infected was Clive.

"Oh god…" She gasped, covering her mouth with her hands. "There's only one way that this could have happened." She froze to the spot, staring into Clive's blood red eyes. All emotion had been drained out of them, all but one. Anger. He bit into the soldier's throat and ripped it out with his teeth, then grabbed his head and smashed it into the floor several times. The soldier died silently.

"Manda come on!" Tammy called, but her cries were fruitless; Manda just stood on the spot entranced. Now she would never find out what he knew about what happened on that fateful day before infection broke out. Tammy grabbed her hand and pulled her away. "Come on, we can't just stay here." The infected Clive gave chase, his new hunger for death consuming him.

"We've got to find Flynn and Andy." Tammy planned, trying to speak clearly whilst running. She looked up to the sky and a drop of rain fell into her eye; its cold moister felt nice as it rolled down her cheek. And with that, more rain started to pour down.

The rain made the floor slippery and harder to walk on, let alone run. Manda and Tammy were aching from the lack of sleep and amount of running they had been doing, but they couldn't stop in the fear of being killed. Tammy looked behind her to check, Clive was still after them.

Manda took out the radio she had pocketed earlier. "Flynn!" She called, whilst trying to split her concentration between talking and running. "Flynn, bloody answer!" There was a shriek and then a period of static.

"Where are you? Are you alright?" Flynn's voice finally responded. "Did the soldiers get you?"

"Oh so you knew about the soldiers then?" Manda snapped. She looked above at the walkways, trying to spot Flynn.

"Look, I can see you through my scope; just go where I tell you to, okay?" He shared his idea with the running women. Manda nodded largely, so he would see and waited for his first order. Another thought that occurred to her was what had happened to Andy, he went off in the same direction as Clive, but Clive had been infected; what if he was dead? They had to search for him, but they should concentrate on regrouping with Flynn first.

"Left." Flynn ordered. Manda and Tammy agreed and ran round the left corner. "Keep going forwards, you're close to me. Take your next right and then your next right. Then you should be able to see me up on the ledge. Flynn over and out." Their feet pounded the soaking wet pavement floor as they ran, trying the hardest they could to outrun the infected Clive; Clive was starting to gain on them, his uncontrollable rage pushing him further and further to catch his prey. Manda checked behind her, he was hot on their trail. It was finally the right time to use the handgun. She pulled it out and stood still, aimed the gun in Clive's direction and shot three times. Each of the bullets missed and the infected kept chasing. Manda swung herself round to try and keep a considerable distance between herself and Manda and the infected Clive.

They found the right turn and Tammy almost slipped over as they swiftly ran round it. They noticed a trail of blood coloured patches on the watery floor.

"This must be the way Clive came from." Manda deduced.

"Which means Andy must be around here somewhere!" Tammy jumped to a conclusion.

Manda grabbed Tammy's arm and pulled her into a little grove in the lines of generators. "I didn't say that."

"Yeah, but he wouldn't run off, he just wouldn't." The girl tried to argue. Manda pressed her finger against Tammy's lips.

"Focus. I know we need to find Andy, but first we really need to find Flynn. He has the scope, so he can see most of the industrial park. Trust me?" She offered her her hand.

Tammy smiled at her and shook her hand. "I trust you." They set off running again, having possibly lost Clive.

Andy's legs were starting to ache as he had been running non-stop since Clive was infected about twenty minutes ago. He was starting to slow down as the salt water in the rain seeped into the stitches on his head, stinging with a sharp pain. The upside was it washed the blood out of his hair and off his hands. He took a moment to stop and sat on the drenched floor, leaning against a metal pole holding a set of stairs up. Now that he knew the truth, he didn't want to be around anybody anymore. But the truth coming out, also helped him understand a few things; memories were flooding back into his head, like running off from Tammy into the subway tunnel. Now he knew why he did it. He did it to protect her, not only from infection, but also the heartbreak of her brother possibly dying.

He pulled his hair back and let the rain pour onto his forehead, rushing the sweat away. He needed to think, get his head straight. Was what he was doing really the right thing? The last time he ran away all he could remember before fainting was his sister's distressed calls of his name. He didn't want to hurt her tin he same way that he had before; on the other hand however, he didn't want to be the cause of her death. It was a tough decision for such a young child, and he didn't understand the situation fully. If he was infected, how could he still feel and think like a normal person? He decided that sitting there doing nothing wasn't going to solve anything, he had to go back, back to the entrance and try to find the others. He got up to his feet again and began his run to the entrance.

All the generators looked the same to him, and he couldn't tell if he had been through this area before. He stopped running and came to a steady speed walking pace, accessing his surroundings. They all seemed different in the rain, he was desperately lost; one of the most horrible feelings someone can experience.

"Tammy!" He shouted at the top of his voice. "Taaaaam!" There was no answer.

"Right." A voice came from behind him, a young Texan voice. "I'm not one for killing children, but orders are orders nonetheless. Let's at least do it in style." Andy turned to see two soldiers standing guns pointed to his head. He froze to the spot, his eyes focused down the barrels.

"Cuff him." The Texan one ordered. The other soldier nodded and retrieved a pair of plastic hand bonds. He took a step closer to Andy, who tried to run; as he did so the soldier grabbed the hood of his jacket. To the boy's luck, the jacket was open and he was able to wriggle out. Abandoning his jacket, Andy quickly made his attempted escape. The soldier was left bewildered, tossing the hoody aside.

"Well don't let him get away you moron!" The first soldier shouted after the other one. The second soldier pulled out a vial of chloroform.

The constant onslaught of rain was both distressing yet fresh. Andy found it hard to keep a steady pace without slipping, but it felt good being clean again; albeit dripping wet. He stopped, not knowing the fatality of such an action, and took a moment to stare up into the air. This was the first time he had seen rain since he and Tammy had gone off to Spain the previous September. He turned back, breathing heavily and rapidly. To his horror, the soldier had caught up to him; before he had a chance to run, the soldier had grabbed the back of his shirt.

"No wriggling out of this one you little brat." He mocked. Andy tried to resist his grip, but the soldier was simply too strong. He felt the man's hand holding a cloth press gently across his mouth and nose. A strong smell filled his nostrils and his eyelids fell heavily.

The Texan soldier joined him. "You did a good job Logan." He praised the man's use of chloroform.

"Thanks Jefferson." The other one said in his own Beverly Hills accent. He picked the boy up and lifted him over his shoulder into a Fireman's lift. "What are we going to do with this little bugger?" Jefferson took a moment to think, he knew there had to be more than just one kid in the facility, but what would be the best way to lure them out.

"We're gonna use him as bait." He said in a dark, gleeful way. "Come on, bring him to the entrance." The two set off back to where all the events started, with Andy slumped unconscious over Logan's shoulder. Jefferson switched his radio on. "Captain, we've got ourselves some bait."

"Good, bring him to the entrance." The captain's gruff voice replied.

"Copy that."

Flynn was starting to get impatient; he wondered where the girls had gotten to. He looked through his scope again to try and find them, but to no avail. He sighed and looked as his steamy hot breath hit the cold vapour in the air. He switched on the radio to try and get contact.

"Girls, where are you?" He called. He heard static coming out of it, but then an old American voice was heard.

"Ah, so now I know the voice of the man who I'm going to kill. Too bad you're American; you might be a good guy."

"Look please." Flynn reasoned. "We're not infected and we have a boy who really needs to get out the country."

"Oh the boy? We have him at the entrance and you're lying, the boy is infected. Lucky for you we haven't killed him yet, but if you don't hand yourselves in, we will. I've sent one of my best men to find you, Jefferson. He's gonna bring you to me and you will submit. That is all." The radio returned to silence. Flynn was outraged, he had promised to keep the other three safe, and he was failing badly.

He pocketed his radio and headed for the rusty white staircase. If he wanted to save Andy, he only had a few minutes to do so. He jumped the last few as he felt them buckling, the rain and rust finally getting too much. He turned to go the other way when he was stopped in his tracks by one of the soldiers.

"Going somewhere?" He said. "If I were you, I'd put the gun down. Now!" He aimed his gun at Flynn. Flynn retaliated and did the same. The tension built up between them until it was thick enough to slice. Both staring into each other's eyes, neither one of them averted their gaze; one wrong move and either of them could be dead within a second.

"You think you can shoot before me? You're foolish." The soldier taunted. Flynn swallowed, tried to keep cool and not respond to the taunts. He felt his finger pressing more on the trigger. But he didn't want to shoot first; for all he knew the other soldier might have really good reflexes, it wasn't worth the risk. Similarly, Jefferson didn't want to risk shooting first either.

"Where's your gasmask soldier? Not very professional are you?" Flynn tried to unnerve him, make him a little angry.

"Cheap shots? Is that all you've got? I didn't think you'd be that big of a threat, so why bother?"

Flynn noticed two figures creeping up behind the soldier, one of them holding a handgun. He couldn't quite make out who they were as he was adamant not to take his eyes off Jefferson's eyes. Literally one second of looking away would give him a chance to shoot to kill. The figure was now directly behind the soldier, it was a woman with blonde hair. She held her handgun right against the back of his head.

"You know what?" Flynn said. "Prepare to die asshole."

"You've got to be kidding me." Jefferson simply laughed back. "You cannot be serious. I haven't got time for this, prepare to die yourself." Just as he finished the sentence, a loud bang was heard and he slumped to the ground. Lowering his gun, Flynn noticed that the figures were Manda and Tammy. Manda threw the now empty handgun to the side.

"Thank god you showed up." Flynn thanked her. "Otherwise I'd have been there all day."

"Don't worry about it. Now hurry up, we've got to get to Andy in time." She replied and picked up the dead soldier's rifle. Together, their feet started pounding on the rainy concrete floor.

The path they were following led in many twists and turns and eventually they reached the body of the soldier that Clive had killed earlier. Manda instructed Tammy to collect his rifle and they continued on to Andy. Manda had a plan, she hoped that if they could outnumber the guards, then they might be able to save Andy and get a free passage out of the industrial park.

The trip to find Andy was one of the longest trips Tammy had ever made. With every step, her anxiety about what could be happening to Andy grew larger. She couldn't help but get images of the soldiers killing him in her head, no matter how much she tried to shake them off they subconsciously stayed in her mind. She had almost lost him once before and was adamant she wouldn't a second time. Manda turned round to her and smiled lightly, Tammy returned the gesture half-heartedly.

"We're going to get Andy back. I promise you." Manda reassured her.

"I know." She replied simply and set her focus back to running faster. It had been several twists and turns and Flynn held his hand up and closed it up into a fist. Manda stopped and used her arm to stop Tammy.

"What are we doing?" Tammy inquired. Flynn turned round and covered his lips with his finger. Knowingly, she stopped talking and stood still.

Flynn turned and whispered to them. "Right, they have Andy. But there are only two of them. Get your guns at the ready and aim at the guy on the left. I'll take the one on the right." The three of them stepped into the soldier's view and aimed their guns at them. The Captain did the same. Logan, the other soldier, pointed his gun at Andy's head.

Once again they were locked in a battle of patience.

"Hand the boy over, and we won't shoot." Flynn demanded. He noticed the soldiers had masks on, so their eyes were not visible. It was going to be much harder this time to shoot at the right time.

"No, we've got exactly what we want now." The leader on the right replied. "This boy is something new, something we only encountered before in the Isle of Dogs outbreak. He's infected but he's not showing any symptoms. Care to explain why?"

Flynn thought for a moment before Manda spoke up. "We don't know. We're as much in the dark as you are."

"And what's your names? I'd like to find out before you die." the Captain said again.

"I'm Manda, this is Flynn and this is Tammy, we're-"

"Hold on, why would you kill him if you need him?" Flynn butted in.

"We can use his body." The Captain lied; Flynn snarled as he couldn't check his eyes to see if he was lying.

Staring into Flynn's eyes, the Captain realised he was a hard book to read. There was a lot of regret in them and a lot of love for the boy. But he didn't care, he was trained not to care for the enemy and in this situation the boy and his friends were the enemies. Instead he kept his gun pointed at Flynn's head in the hope and the knowledge that if the other two were to try anything, he would be able to react quickly and shoot Flynn.

"Get the boy's head." He ordered to Logan. The soldier complied and grabbed Andy by his hair. The boy screamed in pain as Logan tugged on the spot where his stitches lie.

"Put down your guns if you know what's good for the boy and put them at my feet." He ordered, smiling. He watched as Manda and Tammy crept up near to him and placed her guns at his feet.

The Captain spoke to Flynn. "And you, listen to Logan and put your gun by his feet."

Flynn took a few moments to think and then decided it best just to go with it. Reluctantly, he stepped forwards and placed his gun at the soldier's feet.

"Good boy. Now line up over there." The Captain pointed to the right. "Logan, let go of the boy, but keep him with us." The other soldier let go of Andy's air, but grabbed his arms. Flynn backed up against the steel walls to the right, pulling Manda and Tammy into the same position. He closed his eyes as he heard a faint growling sound; he smiled to himself as he knew exactly who it was.

"Manda, it's Clive. When he comes, grab Andy and make a run for the exit okay? Forget about the guns we haven't got the time." He explained. "We just gotta get the fuck out of here, you hear me?" Manda was reluctant, but agreed.

"This was almost too easy." The Captain taunted again. "I mean let's face it you're not the Manchester three." Flynn needed to make more time, otherwise they were dead. He racked his brain for an idea, then the Captain's last comment gave him an idea.

"Who's the Manchester three?" He asked, in full knowledge of who they were. His heartbeat rose as he hoped his distraction would give Clive enough time to arrive. The Captain walked up to him and took of his mask, revealing an old rough face. He had long greasy grey hair, joined together to a beard by long thick sideburns. Each contour in his face was significant and exaggerated by bulldog-like wrinkles and whiskers and his lips were shrivelled by the amount of cigarettes he smoked; his teeth stained yellow.

"Why exactly are you in England?" He breathed in Flynn's face. The stench of musty fags and cheap chewing gum intoxicated Flynn's nose.

"I was part of the team sent into District One in London. Why are you still here? I thought America isolated itself as London fell?" He retorted smartly.

The Captain took a few moments to think. "I'm afraid I can't divulge into that, but the Manchester three? I can tell you all about them. I met them; they were the first survivors I met when I started working on the operation. I arrived at a little cottage on the outskirts of Manchester where they had been staying for the past twenty-eight or so days. There were three of them: Selena, lovely woman; Jim, a bloke from London who had a serious bullet wound and Hannah, she was rather quiet. It wasn't long until the Infected found us and Jim and Hannah fell victim. Selena was forced to kill them both. I've never seen so much chaos and hurt in my life; this is why I have to kill you all today, because if any one of you possess an infected gene, you're a danger to the whole world." He stopped his story as he heard a shout come from one of the passageways. "But I don't do this sentimental bullshit, so let's get back to business." He cocked his rifle and aimed it at Flynn.

Just as he was about to squeeze the trigger, the infected Clive ran out from one of the passages and jumped on Andy.

The Captain swung round. "Kill him you dumb bastard!" He hollered at Logan, but his stunned partner couldn't build up the courage to move.

"Andy!" Tammy screamed and tried to run to him; Manda grabbed her arm without looking at her, her gaze focused on Andy, calmly and mysteriously. Andy, in agonising pain as his injured head fell hardly on the ground, could do nothing but scream.


	9. Cambridge

Chapter Nine

Andy tried to wrestle the Infected off of him, but his arms weren't strong enough. He had never been a sporty person, even the Real Madrid shirt he arrived back in England in had been donated to the Spanish refugee camp him and his Sister had been staying in. He had always been the quiet boy at the back of the class, the one who would keep himself to himself. But this moment made his wish he spent more times exercising. He watched as a string of blood slipped out of Clive's mouth, ready to drop.

"Andy! Close your eyes and your mouth!" Manda shouted. He did so and felt the cold splatter against his left cheek as the blood fell onto it; the smell of it made him gag. Then, with his eyes still closed her felt the breath of Clive stroke his face and a sniffing noise enter his ears. The stench was terrible, worse than the blood. It was like decaying meat and rotten eggs, a combination of all the worst smells in the world.

After sniffing Andy, Clive jumped up and lunged on top of Logan. Blood sprayed from his neck as the Infected bit into it.

"I was right." Manda said in a sigh of relief.

"About what?" Tammy questioned.

"Well, Andy's infected, so Clive won't kill him." She smiled and pushed Tammy to the entrance of the facility. Flynn joined them and pulled Andy up from the ground on the way. None of them looked back to see what had happened to the soldiers, but they could hear their screams. It was the worst sound anyone could hear; the needless death of the soldiers and knowing they couldn't do anything to help. All they could do was keep running.

"Flynn, the chopper!" Manda shouted.

He shook his head. "No way, they'll shoot us down if they see us up there."

He ground to a stop and held out his arms to stop the others. His eyes scanned the area for anything that could be used to transport them. "We absolutely need to make it to Peterborough today. Can you see anything that could take us?"

Manda didn't know what to think, after seeing Clive infected and hearing the soldiers die, she had reached her limit. The rain and mist made it hard to see, but she spotted an abandoned van poking out of the side of the facility. She grabbed the kid's arms and pulled them in its direction, before turning back suddenly. She unstrapped the laptop bag she had been carrying with her the whole time and took it off her shoulder.

"Hold this." She ordered as she shoved it into Flynn's hands. "Look after it, its importance is more than you can understand." Flynn knew she was serious. As he looked into her eyes he could tell she meant it, it was the high level of trust for each other they had developed over the past few days. He nodded and took it from her, strapping it around his own shoulder as they ran off for the van.

With all the recent events Andy had forgotten about the wound he attained on his shoulder. Luckily for him it didn't go deep, but it left a vicious looking scar in its place. Running his fingers along it made him feel sick as he could feel the ridges and bumps where new skin had formed to seal it. His limbs were starting to weaken and he had an overwhelming sense of numbness in his body, the infection was starting to worsen. Although now he knew why it was all happening his mind was put to rest slightly, as he knew that his Mother had survived all that time on her own whilst infected. He just had to be strong and muscle on, despite the hardships.

As the van got nearer, Manda recognised whose it was. It was the one Clive and Warren used to kidnap her. It pained her now that she never bothered to ask him how he had survived the infection. He might have known a safe zone or something of the like. Luckily for them, Clive had not bothered to lock the doors as he got out, so they were able to open. She ran round the back and pulled the back doors open.

"Get in." She ordered the kids with pure determination ringing through her voice. Andy and Tammy jumped in and found a spot to sit. She then span around to the driver's seat, jumped in and waited for Flynn to get in the other side.

She twisted the keys in the ignition and listened to the engine roar into life. Her face grim; she had seen enough death today, it was about time there was some survival. Her mood almost reflected on the constant onslaught of rain pounding down onto the Earth. The muddy tyres of the van spun ferociously as they started fighting against the soggy wet gravel.

"Care to enlighten us on your plan?" Flynn questioned her; he stuffed the laptop between his legs.

"We're going to Cambridge. Now." She kept a level voice and her focus on the road, not allowing the rain to slow her down.

"What?" Flynn gave her a sharp look. "We haven't even got a plan! What if the city is full of the Infected?"

"Then we deal with it. I've seen enough death over the past 9 months, I can't deal with anymore." For the first time, her eyes came away from the road and onto Flynn's eyes.

Tears drops were starting to form and roll down her cheeks.

Andy and Tammy, in the back, were listening to the whole conversation. Tammy sat on the base of the van and allowed Andy to lay across her legs. She wiped her drenched blonde hair from her face and did the same for her brother.

"Are you feeling alright?" She asked him.

His eyes were dropping as he started feeling weaker and weaker. His numbness started to feel like pins and needles. "Yeah, I'm fine thanks." He drivelled. Tammy lifted his arm and looked at his watch. It was about 2:25pm.

"Good." She said to him. "It'll only be an hour or so and we'll be in Cambridge. You just rest for now." She rested her head against the side of the van and closed her eyes in secret anguish.

Andy felt himself drifting off, he fought his hardest to keep his eyes open, but his weak condition forced them closed. As he drifted off to sleep, he thought of all the tough things he had gone through. Arriving back in London; Sneaking out to his old house; seeing his Dad as an Infected; crawling through the ventilation shafts in District One; the long walk to Regent's Park; the darkness of the London underground; his Dad biting him; the helicopter crash in Headsworth; the journey north to Stamford; the coma and all the business in the industrial park. He had never felt fear quite like looking into his own Father's eyes and seeing nothing but hatred and rage. Just thinking about it struck poor terror into his mind. He shook his head in a bid for the images to go away before laying his head back in Tammy's lap. He closed his eyes, mimicking her.

"So what _are_ you proposing we do then?" Flynn challenged, sick of the lack of information he was getting.

"We drive in, get to the university, get my laptop and sort Andy out." She responded, then quickly turning her attention back to driving. The van was thundering down the road at about 70 miles per hour.

"Yeah, but how exactly do you think we're gonna get out the country?" He snapped.

"Well we'll cross that bridge when we get to it." And Flynn's question was avoided once again. She watched as the window wipers went side to side in perfect harmony. She was planning out what they were going to do in her head. First they were going to arrive in Cambridge and travel to the university, pick up her work laptop. Head off to the Primate Research Facility, then extract some of Andy's blood, run the diagnostics checks on the laptop and then… Well she would come up with it at the time. Secretly, she had no idea what they were going to do, but she thought that maybe they could sneak past the quarantine and escape England.

She peered out the window and watched the trees whiz by. The countryside looked so peaceful to her, almost as if the infection never existed. Suddenly, the radio blared into life. The two of them in the front jumped at the static noise.

"…Brecon Beacons…Help…Please respond…" A Welsh voice cried through it."

"It's probably old. Just ignore it." Manda stated it and switched it off. "We have to focus on here and now." Even she was shocked at her own sudden sense of authority and determination. Seeing Clive again really hit home how personal the situation could be. The rest of the journey was silent.

The van finally approached Cambridge at about half 5 in the afternoon. Knowing full well where she was heading, Manda flew the van round the twisty streets. Sometimes it felt like it was going to lift off the road completely. Flynn watched as the buildings flew past, grabbing hold of the handle above him to stop himself jolting as the van hit bumps in the road.

"Manda!" He yelled. "Can't you go a bit slower?"

"Do you think we have time?" She yelled back "You said it yourself, we have to keep out the view of the army!" Her eyes darted across the various buildings that went past until she let on a small smile. She pounded the brake and the van screeched to a stop.

"Everybody out." Manda ordered, waking Andy and Tammy up. She jumped out and opened the back. "Come on, we need to get everything before the infected get alerted." But it was too late; as soon as the words were muttered the group heard a loud choir of shouting and growling. A crowd of the Infected had seen their van and followed them, their desire to kill driving them on to catch the uninfected.

"Into the building! Now!" Flynn called rounding them all in.

Manda, once again, had grasp of Andy and Tammy's arms, pulling them into the University. Once they were inside the building, Manda and Flynn grabbed all they could to create a barricade, using old discarded chairs, cupboards, tables and filing cabinets. The University was deserted, the dark corridors were unlit and an eerie silence was all they had for company. Manda had never experienced the place like this, but it wasn't very different to how she had been living since the start of infection.

Their feet pounded down the corridors of the building until they reached a flight of stairs. Manda pulled them in the direction of the stairs, it was the Science staircase. Then she directed them down the hallway to a door which was labelled _Human Biology_.

"Right, this is the one. Stay here and wait for me." And with that, she darted into her room.

"Tammy, what's happening?" Andy asked, his head spinning. "I don't understand." Tammy pulled him into her hands and quietened him down.

"We're just getting a laptop and then we'll be off again." She replied. She looked at Flynn, her eyes telling him to back her up.

"Yeah I wouldn't worry about it little guy." He assured him. He had no gun anymore so he knew it would be much harder to get to the next destination, especially with all the Infected outside. Although he thought they might be able to sneak out past them and get away, but he realised how hard that would be because they could easily be swamped when they got in a vehicle.

Manda burst back out of the door, with her work laptop in hand.

"Next stop, staff room." were the only words muttered from her mouth. She ran ahead, leaving the others to catch up to her. Another long run followed, leading them to the staff room on the first floor near reception. The room was invaded as the four of them poured in; Manda went straight to searching the room, Flynn and the kids stood near the door watching her.

"What are we looking for?" He asked.

Manda was bent down by a safe. "Keys!" She smiled as she held a set of keys in front of her. "For the minibus." Then all at once, the group was off again towards the fire exit at the other side of the staff room.

Manda pushed down on the metal bar and the heavy door opened, allowing them to leave. She led the group round to the front of the building where the Infected stood waiting, pounding at the main entrance like hungry animals. Flynn started to assess the situation in his head. There only one option to take, to ensure the safety of the others, especially the kids. The last and ultimate option. As much as the thought scared him, he knew it was the right thing to do. So silently in his head he decided it was the right thing to do. Manda went to run and Flynn grabbed her arm.

"No." He said. "You can't run out like that, you'll get ripped apart."

"Then what do _you_ suggest then?" She returned confrontationally.

"Manda please! For once listen to me. Remember back in Stamford? We drank to survival?" He explained. She nodded, knowing what he was thinking. "Well this is me, ensuring your survival." He smiled at her, but she didn't return it.

"No you can't do that." She tried to change his mind, but it was already made up.

"There's no other option though is there? They need you, but I'm disposable." He pulled her in for a tight hug. "Good luck." She let out a smile and embraced him back.

"Manda's going to take care of you, okay?" He moved onto the kids. He stroked Andy's hair and smiled at him, then he did the same to Tammy. "Promise me you'll look after your brother and keep him safe, if not for me then for Doyle." A tear welled up in Tammy's eye.

"Promise me." He repeated. She gave him a nod and with that he ran off to initiate his plan. Approaching for the van, he was relieved that the rain had stopped, it would help his plan work more effectively. His eyes jumped from Infected to Infected, making sure this would work, it was crucial that they all surround him. He jumped into the front of the van and positioned himself next to the gas tank.

_There's a saying that when you die your entire life flashes in front of your eyes. It's a goddamn fucking lie_. _All I can feel is fear, deep deep fear. I need to do this though, for Manda, Andy and Tammy. Otherwise everything that Doyle fought for, everything that Rhys fought for and everything that Manda is fighting for is pointless. _But then it struck him. It struck him that all his thoughts were with Manda and the kids. He hadn't had one passing thought about his family, or at least not after he made this decision. Secretly, he thought to himself that he would never see them again anyway. A tear rolled down his cheek as he reached for a grenade from his utility belt. He took a moment to stare at it, every single crevice in the rigid green-brown shape. Years of military training and it all came down to this moment. They taught him to kill, but they never taught him how to be a hero. Now it was time to prove that he could be one.

He whistled to the Infected, causing them to gather round the van, he took a deep breath, grasped the grenade with one hand, slotted his finger through the hole in the pin and with one quick, swift tug, the pin was released.


	10. The Final Secret

**Author's Note - Well here we go, the last regular chapter. All of this has been in my head since I started planning, the beginning and the end. The middle has changed drastically. But the beginning and end have stayed the same completely. Enjoy Chapter Ten and please review. ^_^**

Chapter Ten

Manda, Andy and Tammy all watched in sheer horror as the van erupted into a mushroom of violent, bright red flames. The light was blinding so they shielded their eyes, and then they covered their mouths from any flying pieces of Infected. The sad thing was, that in a situation like this, there was no time to mourn, so Manda sprang into action and ran for the minibus. Tammy and Andy joined her in the sprint; they had to get into the bus before anymore Infected were alerted. They tried not to look at the flaming pile of bodies, but the bright light coming from it attracted their eyes.

Manda slotted her keys into the side door and slid it open, allowing the kids to jump in. She rested the work laptop and her laptop that Flynn had given her on arrival at the university on the passenger seat and her foot pressed down on the accelerator. Once again they were on the road, thundering through the streets of Cambridge; this time, heading for the outskirts.

"Right, this time we're heading for the Cambridge Primate Research Facility." She informed the children in the back. "Ipso facto, this place is where I worked with Clive and a few other men. I left the project and Clive and another man Warren blackmailed me to keep my mouth shut about the place." They didn't answer; Flynn's death had shaken them, even more so than Rhys's. Instead the rest of the trip was entirely silent.

A body was sat in the middle of the street, facing away from the minibus. Manda sat up a bit to see what it was; but the lack of signs made it hard to tell if it was an Infected or not. The sun was setting and the lack of light made it hard to tell as well. Instead of taking a risk, Manda pressed her foot down harder and allowed the minibus to crush its body into the ground. She felt the bus jump as the wheel rolled over the skull and it crunched as it went under. In the back.

Andy squinted at the sound. That along with the ride and his rough state made him gag a couple of times until eventually he unloaded the contents of his stomach on the floor of the minibus. Tammy grabbed hold of him and patted him on the back a few times; the few remaining leftovers of sick spat out, with a little trace of blood.

"Manda!" Tammy called. "Andy's getting worse, we need to do something!" She reached into her pocket and pulled out the last paracetamol pill. She handed it to her brother who tried his hardest to swallow it.

"Just try and hold on." Manda replied. "It won't be long and we'll arrive. Just keep Andy upright, don't let him lay down just in case it happens again."

The girl listened and sat Andy down slouched over slightly so he was facing the bottom of the seat in front of them. But then, completely out of character, he swatted Tammy away.

"Andy?" Tammy, shocked by his action, asked.

"Sorry, I don't know why I did that." He mumbled back to her, before looking at her apologetically.

"It's okay." She replied and patted him on the arm. " But we better get to this place soon." In her head she knew her brother was getting worse for wear. Her Mother had managed to suppress the virus for six months, but Andy was just a child with a much lower immune system, even though he wouldn't get fully infected, there was no telling what the virus could do to him over time. She was ripped from her thoughts as the minibus came to a screeching stop; she looked out the window to what looked like a hospital. Manda had run round and opened the back doors for them. Andy, who could barely walk, was carried by Manda who pulled his arms round her neck for support as she wrapped her arms round onto the bottom of his thighs.

"Grab the laptops." She ordered Tammy, who did so. They thundered into the building.

The doors creaked open and inside was a dimly lit reception room. A place which once saved people's lives was now lifeless. The irony was painful. As they walked in, Manda headed straight for a door on the left marked _Authorised Personnel Only_. She nodded her head in its direction, signalling for Tammy to open it. Tammy pulled the door open, surprised that it was unlocked and partly open already. Manda was also surprised.

"I was about to give you my key, but I guess we don't need it." She shared a brief smile with Tammy, before suddenly remembering Flynn's absence, then her smile faded. Hurriedly, she encouraged Tammy down the staircase that stood in front of them. Nothing could be seen beyond the fourth step, it was total darkness. Manda hadn't thought about it, they were going to need some source of light.

"Tammy, could you go to the counter and pull out the emergency aid box and take the two torches out." She was incapacitated with the weak Andy in her arms. Tammy did so and returned with them sharply. They were small and made from stainless steel. Manda supported Andy with her left hand and took one of the torches with her right one. Slowly and surely, she led Tammy down the stairs.

The torches offered little light, leaving a strobe of it until it hit the steps in front. Tammy could feel cobwebs trail her face as they took the climb downwards, she could have sworn she felt something crawl down her neck. She shivered at the thought of what it could be, was it a spider or maybe something else? The thoughts were so insignificant, but in this environment, they felt more important than anything. They reached the end of the stairs and entered what looked like a big room with dozens of opened cages, boxes and tanks.

"Over there." Manda said pointing her torch at a raised surface. She moved over and rested Andy down onto it. "Stay here with him, I'm going to go and find the backup generator. It should have stored enough electricity to last a few days." She shined her torch around the room until she found the security room. "I'll just be over there, okay?"

"Yeah, don't worry about us, we'll be fine." Tammy smiled at her meekly and turned to her brother, whose eyes were starting to close. She leant down to his ear and whispered. "Andy come on; please don't do this to me. Not now not ever. Please don't die." She cried silently into his shoulder. She wasn't prepared for this, even though it had happened before in Manda's house, that was because he hit his head. This time he had just drifted off. Her tears soaked his light blue shirt as he lay motionless.

The security room was piled top to bottom with televisions which would previously display what was happening in all areas of the lab. Manda always found it odd that they would keep their backup generator in here, but she did suppose thieves wouldn't look there for it. There was something playing on her mind, something bigger and more personal to her than Flynn's death. It was where her husband, Ethan had gone the night he left. He had told her it was an assignment which was on a need-to-know basis, but she never believed him, not for one minute. Then there was that thing Clive had said in the industrial park._ "Oh believe me, you already have…" _The Words rang in her head over and over, never becoming clearer. Maybe this was her chance; maybe she would find her answers here.

She spotted the backup generator and opened the glass door. There were various buttons labelled for the different sections of the lab. She flicked them all on and the lights throughout the facility lit up. All the security televisions flickered into power, attracting Manda's attention.

"Aha." She muttered, satisfied. She sprang over to the VCR and rewound the security tape. "Now I can see how infection broke out." She pressed play as she saw three figures in black on the screen. She stared at all the screens as the tape played.

"Right, here we are, the lab is just down the hall." A female voice came from one of the figures. One by one the cameras were blanked out as the figures covered them with pieces of card. Manda, now frustrated, could only hear what they were saying, the picture had completely gone. She listened on to the conversation, whilst trying not to concentrate on the sound of monkeys screeching.

"Bingo." A man's voice said. Stunned, Manda stepped back against the wall. She recognised the voice, it might have been, no, it must have been her husband, Ethan. She covered her mouth and listened on.

"Fucking hell." A third voice said, this one was foreign, possibly Polish or Russian. There was a long silence.

"Oh God." The female whispered.

Then she heard Ethan's voice again. "Keep your shit together, if you want to get 'em out of 'ere."

"I can open these no problem." The foreign guy again.

"Then get to it!"

Then were loads of heavy footsteps and her co-worker Warren's voice was heard. "Security, we have a break in, get to sector-" He was cut off by something. "I know who you are; I know what you think you're doing-"

"If you don't want to get hurt, keep your mouth shut and don't move a fucking muscle." Manda couldn't bear hearing her Ethan speak like this. She hated it when he got offensive.

"The chimps are infected!" Warren pleaded. "They're highly contagious, they've been given an inhibitor."

"Infected with what?"

"In order to cure, you must first understand." Manda was hearing Warren's true personality, his weak one, not the tough front the put on that day he and Clive beat the pulp of her.

"Infected with what?" Ethan shouted violently.

After another long silence, Warren simply said. "Rage."

"What the fuck is he talking about?" The Polish man shouted in desperation.

"We haven't got time for this shit, get the cages open-"

Manda switched the tape off, tears streaming down her cheek. The truth had finally found its way into her head. The day Ethan had seen her bruises, the day she told him what happened, the day before he left were all the day before the tape was recorded. He had gone with some animal's rights activists to release the monkeys. The Rage outbreak was _her_ fault. Or at least, that's how it seemed in her head now.

For a moment, both women sat crying, releasing their own personal sorrows, Tammy begging her brother to wake up and Manda begging for the truth to be something else. She looked up and remembered the reason they were here. She wiped the tears from her cheeks and stood up, taking off her suit jacket. She joined Tammy in the main room.

"He's dead." Manda screamed, still crying into Andy's shoulder. Manda pulled her back gently.

"He won't die I promise you." She replied. She places her finger under Andy's nose. There was no breath. "Okay this power is going to last us a maximum of ten days, at the most. I can hook him up to a respiration machine and maybe we'll be able to save him." She tried to smile confidently, but failed miserably. Sitting on the floor, Tammy was in hysterics, she had already lost her Mother and Father, and she didn't want to lose Andy as well. Manda checked Andy's eyes; they still had some life in them. She was sure he would pull through it. She pulled over the complicated looking respiratory device and strapped the mask round Andy's mouth. She then hooked him up to the life support machine. Soon, he was all wired up to breathing apparatus.

"So what do you expect us to do now?" Tammy screamed at Manda.

"We do what everyone else does in these situations." She replied. "We wait." Deep down, she knew Andy would soldier through, but her mind kept telling her to expect the worse. Instead of moping, she grabbed her laptops and opened them both up. She grabbed a needle from a nearby table and wiped it on her clothes, half expecting Tammy to stop her, but Tammy understood exactly what she had to do as it could potentially save Europe. She pushed the needle gently into Andy's right arm and extracted a reasonable amount of blood. As she did so, little did she notice, Andy's hand gave a slight twitch.


	11. Epilogue

7 Days Later

Andy's body still lay motionless on the table. The heart monitor was showing slight signs of life, but nothing solid was showing through. The past seven days had been tough. Tammy had cried her last tear over Andy, she was emotionally empty now; cold as stone. Manda had been running several tests through her computer and keeping several logs regarding Andy's state. She had also moved the security monitors into the main room to keep an eye on them. Every now and again, one of them would venture into the canteen in the hospital above, but for the most part, they hadn't eaten much. Neither of them spoke to each other much as they just didn't have the energy; sleepless nights and malnutrition were starting to take their toll.

Manda was finishing her day's log, noting Andy's breathing and heart rate. He had starting breathing again the previous day, but his heart rate was still worryingly low. She saved it, closed the file and shut the laptop down. Tammy was doing the same thing she had been doing for the past seven days, sitting next to Andy, stroking his hair, wishing him better. She knew this had something to do with his infection, it had to, it just had to. She checked Andy's watch; it was half past ten in the evening. Something attracted her on the security television.

"Manda." She spoke as she pointed at three gasmask clad men in long leather coats walking down the corridors. Manda joined her and stared at the monitor.

"It can't be…" She said to herself. "There's no way they can know we're here."

The door burst open and the three men entered, brandishing Glock Handguns. They pointed them at Manda and Tammy, but then noticed Andy's unconscious body.

"What's up with the boy?" The man in the front spoke with a strong Welsh accent. It reminded Manda of Rhys.

"He's injured- No hold on, who are you and how do you know we were here?" She replied, still stunned by their appearance.

"We didn't, we're the first search party." He took a small radio out his pocket, more modern than the one Manda had left in the minibus. "B Team, get to the vehicle, we've got survivors, three of them, two alive and well, one injured badly."

Manda walked back to Tammy and Andy and unhooked Andy from the equipment, checking his breathing to make sure he could live without it.

"Right pack whatever you got, we're taking you to the Brecon Beacons." The masked man said and he cocked his gun.

**Author's Note: And three months in the working comes to this point. :D It's been a great joy writing it and it's the first fic I have ever completed.**

I'd like to thank a few people:  
Richard Pearce for getting me into the 28 Days Later franchise.  
Joanne Langford for proof-reading.  
Seth Rodgers for showing interest and a pretty awesome background for youtube.  
And Arceus of Infinity for comparing notes with me. 

**The story continues soon in 28 Weeks Later: Resistance.**


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